Good morning, members. It is my pleasure to offer my inaugural speech in this chamber. As I was preparing my remarks for this morning’s presentation, I realized that I don’t think I’ve ever spoken for 20 minutes straight, so this will be an adventure. At the same time, it’s something I clearly will have to get used to. Who knows? Sometime soon, I may think that 20 minutes is only a healthy introduction.

To be one of only 1,968 members to have stood in this chamber in all of the history of our great province of Ontario is still something I’m getting used to. I understand from the Clerk that I’m member number 1,937. I like that number. Seeing those names in the corridors of this beautiful building and knowing that we are continuing the important work that they undertook is a little overwhelming. As I hope to outline in this speech, though, I want to focus on the outcomes of government, as I know they did over the past 155 years.

I want to begin my remarks by thanking the people who were so supportive in helping me with my journey to this chamber, beginning with my dear wife, Margot Byers. Margot is here with us this morning. Margot and I will have been married for 36 years as of next month. She has been a caring and loving partner and fantastic mother of our three sons. She has also been tremendously supportive and patient as I’ve pursued elected office many times, as you will hear shortly. Thank you for everything, Margot.

Margot and I have been blessed with three fantastic sons: Adrian, Peter and Cameron, who are actively pursing careers in health care, finance and engineering. Thank you for being who you are. You make us proud every day.

I’m delighted that our fantastic and multi-talented daughter-in-law Teresa Silva-Byers is here as well. She and Adrian will have been married three years as of next month. Thank you, Teresa, and welcome.

My mother, Mary Byers, is here as well. In addition to being a great mother and a very accomplished author, she is a big reason why I am standing in this chamber today. You see, she and my father, David Byers, were very active in the PC association and campaigns for Len Reilly, who was the member for Eglinton–Lawrence, which is where we lived when I was young. In fact, when Mr. Reilly announced that he was not running and Roy McMurtry was thinking of running, Roy first asked my dad if he wanted to run. Roy would have supported my dad if he had wanted to run. But Dad was not interested, and Roy McMurtry not only became a member here, but of course had a distinguished career as Ontario’s Attorney General and Solicitor General. So thank you, Mom, for who you are and for lighting the spark that led me here today. Dad passed away 26 years ago, but I know he would have been pleased to see today happen, and I know he’s looking down from a gallery above.

Of course, I also want to thank the constituents of the great riding of Bruce–Grey–Owen Sound. I am very grateful for the confidence you showed in me as a new candidate in this past election. The voters sent me to Queen’s Park with a solid margin, and I will be forever grateful. I will work hard to earn your trust every day.

I want to recognize, as well, the incredible work of our dedicated campaign team. We are fortunate to have a history of campaign success in Bruce–Grey–Owen Sound, but we take nothing for granted and always work like we’re 500 votes behind. This time was no different. We all worked our tails off putting up signs, getting to the doors, raising funds and running the office. And in the end, we got it done. So I want to thank our core team, also known as the A Team, for all their dedication, support and friendship: Karen, Carol, Dave, Bill, Jo, Sharon, Don, Bob, Paul, Tyler, Ted and John—from the bottom of my heart, thank you.

And finally, there were so many friends who supported my campaign efforts, from former work colleagues, friends who used to live in the riding, and friends and supporters from past campaigns. Clay, Jim, Larry, Bill, Andrew, Michael and many more—thank you for your guidance and friendship.

I now want to acknowledge the person who represented Bruce–Grey–Owen Sound from 2011 to 2022, Mr. Bill Walker.

Interjection: Hear, hear.