Thank you to both of my colleagues for your comments this afternoon.

To the member from Bruce–Grey–Owen Sound: I know you talked about some particular pages of the budget that you really enjoyed—obviously, for me, I have a certain section with the investments in training, specifically in the health care area.

You also mentioned Learn and Stay—we’re going to be together with the Minister of Health tomorrow; tomorrow is the actual kickoff day to Learn and Stay. Can you tell me what you’re hearing from students in your area, or even from the hospitals and long-term-care homes, about what it’s going to mean for the Owen Sound area?

I think instead of the fearmongering that the member is bringing to the floor, we need to celebrate the opportunities that we’re seeing—a record number of students entering into the nursing profession; as I mentioned, building on the 14,000 nursing registrants in the province last year alone. There are currently over 5,000 internationally educated nurses residing in Ontario whose applications are at various stages, who are able to enter the workforce sooner as a result of the changes that this government is making. We are breaking down registration barriers so that more health care professionals trained in Ontario and other provinces or internationally can practise here in Ontario.

We have a real opportunity here. We are seeing more and more nursing students entering into the profession—the work that our universities are doing, our stand-alone bachelor of science in nursing program now offered at colleges here in Ontario. We’re seeing it across the province—a record number of students who are able to work in our rural and our underserved areas and stay close to home, in the hospitals and long-term-care centres that need those nurses.

Thank you to the member for that question.

Building on the 14,000 nursing registrations in the province last year alone, our government is investing in a range of initiatives to track, train and retain even more nurses. As I mentioned earlier, this year alone in universities—this doesn’t even include colleges—over 109,000 registrations in September 2022.

We are seeing an increase year over year of students entering into the nursing profession.

Look at the investments that are being made in long-term care alone—60,000 new and upgraded beds, and the beds that the parliamentary assistant to health mentioned earlier in hospitals. The investments being made into the health care system are encouraging new and current nurses in the system. They want to be in nursing.

We expanded the new Learn and Stay program to include nurses, paramedics and lab technicians.

This is an exciting field that students are wanting to get into—health human resources—and this government is making the investments to ensure that they are successful.

Thank you to the member for the question.

We are making record investments in health care in Ontario. That starts with the high-calibre education at our world-class education facilities here.

We are ensuring we have more nurses. Brock University now has a stand-alone nursing program. As well, multiple colleges across this province are now able to offer nursing programs closer to home to ensure that students who are practising and learning at those universities and colleges are also working in those communities.

We are making investments that you continually do not support—record investments in more registered nurses, more PSWs, stand-alone programs, our new Learn and Stay program to, again, ensure that we have students who will learn and stay in those communities.

We are seeing record numbers of students who are wanting to get into the profession, and that’s because of the investments that are being made in new hospitals and in new long-term-care centres. We have our new Brampton medical school and our Scarborough centre—record investments made by this government ensuring that more students are wanting to get into the health human resources field.

Thank you to the member from Hastings–Lennox and Addington for that important question. This government understands that investments in college and university hospital research not only strengthens Ontario’s existing innovation and commercialization capacity, but also grows our province’s professional and skilled workforce and positions us as a global leader. Our government is supporting research and innovation that lead to the discoveries and advancements that make a real impact in people’s lives.

Ontario will be supporting innovation with an investment of more than $198 million in research projects at colleges, universities and research hospitals across the province. This funding will support 241 research projects across this province, and these projects will be integral in building, renovating and equipping research facilities with upgraded technology and supporting research to attract new research talent. We will continue our commitment and efforts in strengthening Ontario’s college and university hospital research initiatives, which provide college and university hospitals with the ability to adopt advanced technologies to remain competitive and move Ontario forward.

Thank you to the member for Haliburton–Kawartha Lakes–Brock for raising this important question. This government understands that investments in college and university hospital research not only strengthen Ontario’s existing innovation and commercialization capacity but also grow our province’s skilled workforce and positions us as a global leader. That is why our government is committed to supporting research and innovation that leads to the discoveries and advancements that make a real impact on people’s lives. Whether our researchers are developing new techniques to detect illnesses faster, finding new ways to understand the human brain or working on the latest AI technology, Ontario’s colleges and universities and research institutes are at the forefront.

To help further the great work being done in this sector, our government has invested more than $198 million in 2022 into research projects at colleges, universities and research hospitals across the province. This funding supports 241 research projects across the province and will be integral in building, renovating and equipping research facilities with updated technology as well as attracting new research talent. We will continue to work hard to strengthen Ontario’s college and university hospital research initiatives and thus provide them with the ability to adopt advanced technologies to remain competitive and continue moving Ontario forward.

Ontario has always been a leader in research and cultivation of life-changing and enhancing products. From the latest in technology to life-saving medication, our researchers are at the forefront. With Peter and IPON, Ontario will take the next step and ensure the benefits of this research go on to support future Ontario-based research and that Ontario is the first to benefit. When tax dollars help fund research, taxpayers deserve to see the benefits from it.