Today, Greek Canadians and Greeks around the world celebrate Greek Independence Day. On March 25, 1821, Greeks rose in revolution, achieving independence after living under Ottoman despotic rule for over 400 years.

Today, Hellenes and their friends all over the world mark the restoration of Greek freedom and democracy. That is why, in 2019, I brought forward Bill 77, the Hellenic Heritage Month Act, which wrote into law that March would serve as Hellenic Heritage Month every year. Today, Ontario is the only jurisdiction in Canada and, indeed, in the world that has enshrined this recognition into law. As well, for the first time in over 40 years, a Greek Prime Minister, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, is visiting Ontario. It’s fitting that he is in Toronto today to celebrate this anniversary with us.

Friends, Hellenic Heritage Month is a time to celebrate the accomplishments of more than 150,000 Ontarians of Hellenic origin in our province. Greeks started coming to Canada before Confederation. Today, we are involved in every part of Ontario life: law, medicine, business, government, the arts and much more. Hellenic culture, learning and democracy are part of the common history of the west and the world.

Zhto H Ellada. Zhto O Kanadas.

Long live Greece. Long live Canada.

I would like to take the opportunity to wish all Christians who celebrate Good Friday and Easter a happy Easter.

Speaker, a number of diverse businesses in Mississauga are flourishing, and new ones continue to open shop. They are choosing Ontario as the home for their businesses because we have created conditions for prosperity and growth that haven’t been seen in a long time.

In just a few weeks alone, I have attended multiple grand openings, including two Pakistani restaurants on Ridgeway Drive: Lahore Chatkhara and Lahori Flame. We were also at the opening of a new Tahini’s shawarma on Glen Erin; they started in London, Ontario, and now they have 30 locations. And I visited a few international and ethnic grocery stores, including Hyperama South African shop and Apna Farm South Asian market.

Speaker, these are just limited examples of recent grand openings in Mississauga. People come from all around to visit new businesses, restaurants and stores in Mississauga–Erin Mills because in Mississauga, we have diverse and prosperous local businesses sharing all cultures. You can see, smell and taste every culture from every nation and ethnicity.

Trust me: If you want to explore ethnic food, international cuisine and multicultural businesses, there is no better place in Canada than Erin Mills, and the grand openings aren’t ending any time soon.

Mississauga is growing, commerce is thriving and Ontario remains open for business.