I have a petition here entitled “Raise Social Assistance Rates.”

Currently, recipients of Ontario Works receive $733 and Ontario Disability Support Program receive $1,227. Both of these amounts are well below the poverty line. There have been some modest increases to the Ontario Disability Support Program. However, those receiving the Ontario Works program—their rates have been frozen for decades.

We know that during the pandemic, through the CERB program, it was determined that people needed a minimum of $2,000 per month in order to be able to survive, and so this petition is calling on the government to immediately double social assistance rates for both OW and ODSP.

I fully support this petition, will affix my signature to it and give it to page Anika to take it to the table.

Speaker, just in 2022 alone, 1,326 cases of sexual assault were either withdrawn or stayed before trial, and we already know that 80% of sexual assault cases go unreported. The criminal justice system is very hostile to survivors, and it is very, very difficult to get justice. So in 2019, the Auditor General put forward recommendations in order to reform the system, and Bill 189 aims to do just that. The bill adopts recommendations 1 and 3 from the Auditor General’s report, which would ensure that survivors get the supports that are needed and help them be able to go through the system and get justice at the end of the day.

I fully support this petition, will affix my signature to it and give it to page Diya to take to the table.

I have a petition here entitled “To Raise Social Assistance Rates.”

The rates for social assistance are well below the poverty line. Individuals on Ontario Works are receiving only $733 a month, and those on the Ontario Disability Support Program are receiving only $1,308 a month.

Community organizations—in fact, over 230 of them—have signed a letter to three cabinet ministers urging them to immediately double social assistance rates.

During the pandemic, the federal government decided that an unemployed individual needed a basic amount of $2,000 per month to survive. The rates for OW and ODSP are far below $2,000.

At this time, with the increasing affordability crisis, these rates of social assistance go even less than they used to.

So I join the petition signatories here, who are mostly from Grimsby, a Conservative riding, in calling on the Legislative Assembly of Ontario to immediately double social assistance rates for OW and ODSP.

I have a petition here titled “Raise Social Assistance Rates.”

The recipients of Ontario Works are receiving a rate that has been frozen for decades. There have been very, very small increases to the Ontario Disability Support Program rates. And the rates for both of these programs leave people well bellow the poverty line.

So, this petition is signed by residents from Hamilton, from Stoney Creek, from Lincoln, from Stratford, from Ancaster, all calling on this government to immediately double social assistance rates.

I fully support this petition, will affix my signature to it and give it to page Kai to bring it to the table.

I have a petition here calling for the government to raise social assistance rates. Folks who are on social assistance, both Ontario Works and the Ontario Disability Support Program, are receiving amounts that are far below the poverty line. People who are on OW are receiving rates that have been frozen for over two decades, and those on ODSP have seen a very small increase to their rates and are still below the poverty line. This petition here is calling for the government to double OW and ODSP rates.

The rent control laws did exist for all units, but under the current Conservative government, that was cancelled, and so a lot of tenants in my riding and across Ontario are currently living in apartment rental buildings that are not covered under rent control. As a result, they’re seeing, year after year, their rents increase by double digits for absolutely no reason other than that the landlord can simply do it.

This is causing, of course, a tremendous amount of stress. It is a highly precarious situation for a lot of people in terms of their housing because how much rent can increase by is unpredictable. And so, in this petition, the residents are calling on the government to pass a bill that I’ve tabled in the House called “rent control for all units,” and I fully support and will affix my signature to this petition.

Speaker, health care services are exempt from the HST—including many health care services; however, psychotherapists are still required to charge HST. It makes no sense, for such an important health care service like psychotherapy, that Ontarians should be taxed on it. So this petition simply asks that the government of Ontario take that first step in removing the HST.

This petition is titled Raise Social Assistance Rates, and it reads as follows:

“To the Legislative Assembly of Ontario:

“Whereas Ontario’s social assistance rates are well below Canada’s official Market Basket Measure poverty line and far from adequate to cover the rising costs of food and rent: $733 for individuals on OW and $1,308 for ODSP;

“Whereas an open letter to the Premier and two cabinet ministers, signed by over 230 organizations, recommends that social assistance rates be doubled for both Ontario Works (OW) and the Ontario Disability Support Program (ODSP);

“Whereas small increases to ODSP have still left these citizens below the poverty line. Both they and those receiving the frozen OW rates are struggling to survive at this time of alarming inflation;

“Whereas the government of Canada recognized in its CERB program that a ‘basic income’ of $2,000 per month was the standard support required by individuals who lost their employment during the pandemic;

“We, the undersigned citizens of Ontario, petition the Legislative Assembly to double social assistance rates for OW and ODSP.”

I could not agree more with this petition. I will affix my signature and give it to page Chase to bring to the table.

I thank the member for his question. As I stated in my remarks, there are certainly steps that have been taken in this bill that are addressing concerns that have been raised by stakeholders, especially students; however, so much more needs to be done. At the end of the day, we can have amazing, strong policies in place that are posted on the website and that everybody is aware of, but it doesn’t mean that in reality anything is changing, because the funding is lacking.

If we don’t increase the funding, what is essentially going to happen is that more supports and services, even the existing ones, are under threat and at risk for cutting.

The Deputy Speaker (Ms. Donna Skelly) Further questions?

This petition is titled “To Raise Social Assistance Rates,” and it reads:

“To the Legislative Assembly of Ontario:

“Whereas Ontario’s social assistance rates are well below Canada’s official Market Basket Measure poverty line and far from adequate to cover the rising costs of food and rent: $733 for individuals on OW and $1,308 for ODSP;

“Whereas an open letter to the Premier and two cabinet ministers, signed by over 230 organizations, recommends that social assistance rates be doubled for both Ontario Works (OW) and the Ontario Disability Support Program (ODSP);

“Whereas small increases to ODSP have still left these citizens below the poverty line. Both they and those receiving the frozen OW rates are struggling to survive at this time of alarming inflation;

“Whereas the government of Canada recognized in its CERB program that a ‘basic income’ of $2,000 per month was the standard support required by individuals who lost their employment during the pandemic;

“We, the undersigned citizens of Ontario, petition the Legislative Assembly to double social assistance rates for OW and ODSP.”

I could not agree more. I will affix my signature to it and give it to page Anushga to bring to the table.

This petition is titled “To Raise Social Assistance Rates,” and it reads:

“To the Legislative Assembly of Ontario:

“Whereas Ontario’s social assistance rates are well below Canada’s official Market Basket Measure poverty line and far from adequate to cover the rising costs of food and rent: $733 for individuals on OW and $1,227 for ODSP;

“Whereas an open letter to the Premier and cabinet ministers, signed by over 230 organizations, recommends that social assistance rates be doubled for both” OW and ODSP;

“Whereas the recent small increase of 5% for ODSP still leaves these citizens below the poverty line, both they and those receiving the frozen OW rates are struggling to survive at this time of alarming inflation;

“Whereas the government of Canada recognized in its CERB program that a basic income of $2,000 per month was the standard support required by individuals who lost their employment during the pandemic;

“We, the undersigned citizens of Ontario, petition the Legislative Assembly to double social assistance rates for OW and ODSP.”

I fully support this petition, will affix my signature to it, and I want to thank Sally Palmer for collecting the signatures on this petition.