 It's now time for Member's Statements. I recognize the Member for Kiwet and Ong. Miigwetsah, Speaker. This morning, the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered in Jesus' Women and Girls presented their final report. I would like to thank the in honor of the thousands of people who came forward to share their true telling stories with the Commission. I'm sure it was not easy for them to speak about their sisters, mothers, and friends who were murdered or who disappeared and never came back or came home. I thank you all for the advocacy. What was heard over and over, Mr. Speaker, again, is that in Jesus' Women and Girls, have been subject to colonial violence for generations. The policies of colonization and genocide that were imposed on our people are treated as normal. The inquiry clearly defines these policies as genocide. Over and over again, families and survivors share their stories of genocide against indigenous women and girls. Families turn to a system for help and achieving justice for their relatives. And there was no help, Mr. Speaker. I ask everyone to hear the calls to justice and honor them. I call on my colleagues and all Ontarians to speak out against racism, misogyny, and hold yourselves to account. Learn about the true history of Canada and Ontario. It's not enough to accept a report from the inquiry and say that you will listen, our people expect action, and real systemic change. Miigwech. Thank you. Member Statements. Member for Markham-Solder. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the life of Gilbert Francis Whittemore stands as an inspiration for all Canadians. His passing on May 19th serves as a reminder of how much difference a single life can make. An immigrant from England who served bravely in the Royal Canadian Air Force, Francis trained as a pilot and flew for the Coastal Command during the Second World War. Upon his return home to Canada, he graduated from the University of Guelph where he studied agriculture. He went on to found Whittemore's Berry Farm, the business which bears his name, operates even today. Over the decades, Whittemores was famously provided high quality food products for sale, jobs for people in our community, and a wonderful destination for families looking for fun together outdoors. Gilbert Whittemore was a beloved individual and an iconic symbol of a generation of Canadians whose commitment, dedication, and work ethic helped build a great province and a great nation. He was not just a soldier and a farmer, but an entrepreneur and an innovator. I hope young people across Ontario will continue to look to him and his accomplishments for motivations as they build their own lives and families. He and his wife Evelyn raised four children. They remain an important part of our community in Markham Stovel. I offer my condolences to Mr. Whittemores' children, Mike, Frank, David, and Catherine. It has been my privilege to know and work with Mike and Frank over the past decade. Gilbert and Evelyn had many wonderful grandchildren, including Zach, who was a great volunteer on my last campaign. My thoughts go out to the Whittemore family for the services that they have continued and will continue to contribute to our community. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Here. Member Statements. Member for Davenport. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Menstruation is a normal biological function experienced by half the population. Yet for too many students here in Ontario, a lack of access to menstrual products can lead to embarrassment, shame, and missed days at school. Surveys have shown that 34% of people who menstruate have had difficulty affording menstrual products and social attitudes and gender discrimination too often force young people to hide their menstrual products or lie about having their period. For these reasons, the government of British Columbia has moved to ensure all students can access free menstrual products in schools. Closer to home, the Waterloo Region District School Board has announced it will do the same, recognizing the real problem of period poverty. Speaker, I'm proud to have tabled a motion this week to tackle these issues, one that calls on the government of Ontario to provide free menstrual products in school washrooms. Today, I invite all members of the House to help put an end to the stigma and shame surrounding menstruation and to support student health and well-being here in Ontario. Thank you. Member Stavins, the member from Milton. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Last weekend, the Royal Canadian Legion Branch 136 in Milton celebrated their 90th anniversary. I'm a proud member of the branch and proud to have been able to take part in the parade and ceremonies. Mr. Speaker, branch 136 was chartered on May 21st, 1929 and moved to their current location on Charles Street, downtown Milton in 1939. The celebrations took place Friday through Sunday, starting with their traditional fish fry and karaoke competition and took part in a parade to the Senate half on Sunday. Speaker, during these celebrations, I had an opportunity to meet with members who proudly served Canada and I thank them for their service, Mr. Speaker. Today, branch 136 has close to 600 active members, all of whom uphold the Legion's mandate, which is to protect the rights and interests of all veterans. Over the 90 years, this branch has contributed millions of dollars to community causes and can always be countered on to help organize or host community events. Speaker, I'm proud that our government has committed to helping legions across our great province so that they can continue to support our service personnel and their families. Speaker, I'd like to thank the branch president, Don Hipbell, and the volunteers, members who put together such a great celebration. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Thank you, member statements, the member for Toronto Danforth. Thank you, Speaker. It's becoming clearer that the unfolding climate crisis will affect us in ways and at times that we don't expect. Just last week, the newly elected Premier of Alberta, Jason Kenney, had to cancel a speech celebrating his attack on climate action. The reason the smoke from the climate-stoked forest fires north of Edmonton was too thick. Such irony, my friends, such irony. Here, in Ontario, for too long, when we've talked about adapting to climate change, we focus on infrastructure, roads, buildings, bridges, and all of that's fine, but it's inadequate. Increasingly, the crisis with our climate is going to manifest itself in terms of health impacts. More lung disease, more heart disease, more invasive diseases like Zika and Lyme disease, more psychological problems, anxiety, depression, addiction because of the uncertainty of life and because people will be displaced. People will have to leave their homes because their homes are flooded or under threat of fire. We are going to have to change our health care system, not just our infrastructure. Speaker, it's time for this government to act on the climate crisis and it's time for this government to take account of the changes needed in our health care system to make sure that people are properly protected and looked after. Thank you, Speaker. Thank you. Member Statements, the Member for Ottawa-Benz. Merci, Monsieur le Président. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Today, it's a pleasure to rise, to recognize June as Filipino heritage month as recognized by the House of Commons on June 30th, 2018. Approximately 340,000 Canadians of Filipino origin live in Ontario. This is important because the 12th of June marks the Day of Independence. June 12th is celebrated in recognition of the independence of the Philippines from Spain in 1898. In December 2017, my colleague from across the aisle, now Minister of Seniors and Accessibility, introduced Bill 185, an act to proclaim the month of June as Filipino Heritage Month, which was supported by all three parties. I'd like to congratulate my colleague and continue to celebrate this month today. I want to take a moment to thank Elisiana Tivedad, the President of my Writing Association in Ottawa-Vengy, for being a staunch advocate for the recognition of Filipino Heritage Month by the province and the Law Society of Ontario. I would like to add my voice to the call for the province and the Law Society of Ontario to recognize this month as Filipino Heritage Month. Ottawa's Filipino population has grown 20% and Tagalog is the fastest-growing language in Canada. We should be proud of all the contribution of our friends from the Filipino community. I had the pleasure to go and see them at the church, witness the great dances, dance a little bit myself, and was really happy to see and celebrate how much we owe them to be part of our great community. Merci beaucoup. Thank you, Member Statens, Member for Brantford Brandt. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. It's my pleasure to rise in the house today and talk for a little bit about Lansdown Children's Center in Brantford. It's truly a remarkable place that does remarkable things. On Saturday, May 11th, Brantford Brandt hosted the 15th annual charity motorcycle ride for Lansdown Children's Center. Lansdown provides services for 2,600 children of the special needs in our community, and the money raised through this ride helps to fund recreational and other support groups for these children. It was certainly a sight to behold and here, over 300 bikers gathered at the Civic Center and then guided by a police escort, two by two, they headed out. This year, a new one-hour route of approximately 75 kilometers was introduced, which passed by the Lansdown Center with supporters holding banners and cheering on the riders, wove through Brantford down into Caledonia, Hagersville, and then made its way back to Brantford, raising over $62,000 for this worthwhile cause. A special thank you to everyone who rode, pledged, volunteered, and sponsored this yearly event, both together the community in a wonderful way, involving businesses, volunteers, and riders from both the riding and outside the riding with a common goal of helping children. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. To the member for Hamilton Mountain. Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Today, I would like to bring attention, once again, to the ongoing crisis at the Hamilton Wentworth Detention Center, which is located in my city. It's been nearly 11 months since the coroner's inquest into the overdose deaths of eight prisoners at the center. Since this inquest, eight more have died, and several more have been taken to the hospital for overdose treatment. Their families have had enough, and they're demanding that this government implement the coroner's 62 recommendations. The families are increasingly frustrated with this government's inaction, inaction that could cost more lives. All they want is to make sure that what happened to their loved ones does not happen to anyone else. Let's be frank, Speaker. We have a crisis in our communities. People do not have access to rehabilitation, and other services that would help them overcome addiction. In the first six months of 2019, paramedics have responded to over 350 overdose calls. All of last year, they responded to 450 calls. Between May 20th and May 26th, there were 38 suspected overdoses in Hamilton emergency rooms. This is a crisis. There is no death penalty in Canada, but those who enter our correctional system seem to have easy access to opioids and no support system. Inmates or not, they still have a right to live with safety and dignity. Thank you. Thank you. Member Statements, the Member for Mississauga Centre. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In the month of June, we celebrate our seniors. Seniors are our parents, grandparents, friends and neighbours. In Ontario, we are tremendously grateful for all the contributions our seniors have made and continue to make to our province and our country. They have worked so hard their entire lives to build our province up across all sectors, and even in their retirement, they continue to contribute generously of their time and provide great value to our society. In my time as MPP, I have seen seniors working hard everywhere, volunteering at local hospitals, in non-for-profits, at cultural festivals and community centres, even in political campaigns. Some of my most avid campaigners were seniors, including Shirley and Dave Bray, and Pani Lutsenach-Fentimska. My team would not have been the same without them. This year's Seniors Month theme is, now's the time to start something new, which highlights how aging does not prevent any of us from leading fulfilling lives and how it is never too late to start a new project. During this month, we recognise our seniors for bringing great wisdom, knowledge and experience to everything they do. Today, our province is home to 4.6 million seniors, and every day, 400 more people become seniors in Ontario. Speaker, I was thrilled to welcome the Honourable Minister for Seniors and Accessibility to my riding of Mississauga Centre this past month, and was so proud to stand beside him when we announced a $3 million investment into the Seniors Community Grant programme. This funding will help hundreds of non-profit community organisations to develop local supports and programmes for seniors. Ministers show himself as a senior, and I am fortunate to call him my mentor, colleague and friend. So on behalf of the Government of Ontario, I would like to wish all seniors a happy Seniors Month. Thank you, Mr Speaker. Thank you. Member Statements, the Member for Willowdale. Thank you very much, Mr Speaker. It's hard to believe it's June, despite what the weather feels like outside, but June is certainly a very busy month, and that's the case in Willowdale, where our community is not just watching basketball. The other gripped with raptor's fever, as is the case across the rest of this great country of ours. A couple of weeks ago, though, Mr Speaker, I had the opportunity to visit the local YMCA, where I grew up, and my dad still takes his executive showers every morning. Well, he calls it a workout, actually. But I had the pleasure of playing basketball with some of the youth volunteers aged 18 to 24, who run really great programmes at our local YMCA, helping some of the more vulnerable youth participate in sport and through basketball. They've certainly kept a lot of the kids there busy and active, and that, of course, benefits them in many parts of their daily lives. Mr Speaker, it's been 361 days, and I've certainly learned a lot in this legislature, but I learned something that day playing basketball, and that is that I am not 20 years old anymore, and I've got to tell you, these kids, they were dunking all over me, and it was really hard to watch, but I got a shout-out to them, and we're going to be having them in the legislature in the coming when we resume. I just want to say hi to them, because I said I would, and I want to tell them to keep up the great work. It's really something truly special that they're doing over there, and I'd like to thank them. Of course, I'd like to also add, go Raptors, go, we got this, go into game seven. Thank you so much, Mr Speaker. Thank you very much. That concludes our member statements for this afternoon. Reports by committees.