4 novembre 2026

Report continued from volume A.

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Private Members’ Public Business

Ethnic Media and Community Media Appreciation Week Act, 2026 / Loi de 2026 sur la Semaine de reconnaissance des médias ethniques et communautaires

Mr. Anand moved second reading of the following bill:

Bill 120, An Act to proclaim Ethnic Media and Community Media Appreciation Week / Projet de loi 120, Loi proclamant la Semaine de reconnaissance des médias ethniques et communautaires.

The Deputy Speaker (Mr. Ric Bresee): I recognize the member.

Interjections.

Mr. Deepak Anand: Thank you for that applause.

Before I start, I want to start by sharing the history of our Ontario. Ontario, before it became the province we know today—this land is and has been cared for by Indigenous peoples for thousands of years. Their languages, cultures and stories have been carried from generation to generation. From the bottom of my heart—my family and I thank them for allowing us to meet here.

Then came new chapters: French-speaking communities; British settlement; Confederation in 1867; and waves of families who made Ontario their home, from Ireland, Scotland, Germany, Italy, Portugal, Ukraine, and in more recent generations, India, China, Iran, Iraq, Pakistan, Jamaica, and so many other places.

Today, Ontario is home to people from approximately 200 countries, speaking over 130 languages, with more than 400 ethnic or cultural origins. In other words, we are a whole world in one place, a global village we call Ontario.

All these immigrants arrived with different languages, different traditions, different stories. But they all shared one simple hope: a better life for themselves and for their children. They braved harsh winters, overcame unimaginable hardships, and helped build the prosperous Canada that we know today.

Speaker, I often think about my first day, when I arrived at Pearson airport, with a heart filled with hope and ambitions but at the same time with fear, the fear of uncertainty—"How will I find work? Will my family fit in? Will I understand the system? And will anyone understand me?”

Today, decades after my arrival, I’m thankful to all Canadians who have built our country and for the support I and everyone else who walked into this country has received along the journey. Thank you.

For generations, there have been people quietly helping families answer those questions. Those people are our ethnic and community media—our publishers, our radio hosts, our broadcasters, our local storytellers. They may not have the biggest budgets or the largest newsrooms. But they have something precious: They have the trust of the people they serve. That is why I rise today with such pride to thank them with my private member’s bill, Bill 120, the Ethnic Media and Community Media Appreciation Week Act, 2026. This work did not start yesterday. It has always been a part of Ontario’s history. Let’s look at it.

In the 1830s, German-language newspapers, such as Canada Museum, served communities in what is now the Waterloo region.

In the 1840s, Der Deutsche Canadier began publishing in the city we now call Kitchener.

In Toronto, the Chinese-language Shing Wah Daily began in 1922.

Later, in 1954, Corriere Canadese was founded and became a familiar voice for Italian Canadians.

And over time, more voices joined them—Polish, Punjabi, Hindi, Tamil, Urdu, Arabic, Portuguese, Filipino, and so many others—in print, on radio, on television, and now on the phones in our pockets. The technology has changed, but the purpose has not—to help people understand their new home without asking them to forget the home they came from.

Imagine a new Canadian opening a newspaper and seeing words in the language they grew up with. For a moment, a place that felt unfamiliar feels like home. That is not just information. That is belonging. And that has been made possible by the people and organizations who believed that this recognition mattered—organizations such as the Canadian Ethnic Media Association. Thank you, President Kiumars Rezvanifar, for standing with the journalists and media professionals who work so hard to serve diverse communities.

Thank you to the National Ethnic Press and Media Council of Canada and its president, Thomas S. Saras, who is here, for reminding us that these voices deserve to be heard, including right here at Queen’s Park.

Thank you to Gazeta, the Polish-language newspaper, and its editor-in-chief, Margaret, for speaking so thoughtfully about being the bridge between community life and public life.

And thank you to the Indigenous Media Association of Canada and interim secretary Eden Fineday. Your support reminds us that Indigenous media plays a vital role in preserving language, telling community stories and keeping us connected.

I also want to sincerely thank Premier Ford, Minister Graham McGregor and the Ministry of Citizenship and Multiculturalism for their support of this proposal.

I want to take a moment to thank my wife, Aruna Anand, for encouraging me to take this bill—why this matters. Thank you. This bill carries her voice too.

Speaker, at this point, I want to share what the member from Vaughan–Woodbridge said. MPP Michael Tibollo had an insightful point to make on the importance of ethnic media. Michael said, “Ethnic media maintains the pluralistic society that we treasure so much in this province. It keeps culture alive, both here and abroad. It allows us to keep in touch with what’s going on back home, learn about the great strides our diaspora is making, and gives us a perspective and understanding of local developments to create integrated, informed residents who understand their civic duties.” I would like to thank my friend for his insightful thoughts.

Why this matters to families—imagine a family arriving here with young children. The parents want to do everything right—register the children for school, find a family doctor, understand their rights. But the language is still new, and every form feels complicated. And then someone gives them a community newspaper or they hear a familiar voice on a radio program. Suddenly, the news is not so far away. The information makes sense. They know where to turn. That small moment can change a family’s day, and sometimes it can change their future.

And think about our seniors. So many worked long shifts, raised families, opened businesses and helped build the Ontario we enjoy today. Now perhaps they’re trying to understand a health program, a public service or a change in their neighbourhood. When they hear a trusted voice in their mother tongue, they feel more confident, more included, more connected. For a grandparent, a familiar language is not just a tool for communication; it holds memories, songs, celebrations and the voices of loved ones.

Speaker, we are proud Canadians, but at the same time, we can be proud of our heritage. That is Ontario’s greatest strength.

I see this in Mississauga–Malton. I see journalists from the Weekly Voice, Voice of Toronto, Hashtag Media, Y Media, PTC, Red FM, Zee9, Toronto 360, Parvasi, Canada One TV and many more at cultural celebrations. I see them staying late to speak with residents and making sure stories do not disappear simply because they’re not national headlines—when a student earns an award, when a neighbour raises money, when a volunteer serves somebody without asking for recognition, when a local business creates jobs, when parents ask for safer streets near a school. Do you know who tells those stories? Again and again, it is our local community media, like Mississauga News, Insauga, 905Hub, Sauga 960. They remind people that their neighbourhood matters, that their achievements matter, that their concerns matter. And they do something else that is essential: They ask questions, sometimes difficult ones. They hold governments—including those of us in this House—accountable. They are the trusted voices, and that’s why they matter.

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Ethnic and community media outlets help share important information in familiar languages and with local context. They help people find answers in uncertain times. They may be small in size, but their impact is enormous.

Bill 120 is a simple bill. It would proclaim the week beginning May 1 each year as Ethnic Media and Community Media Appreciation Week. It does not tell journalists what to write. It does not ask them to change how they work. It does not create a new funding program. It simply says something we don’t say often enough: “We see you. We value you. And we thank you.” We honour teachers for shaping the next generation. We thank health care workers for caring for families. We recognize first responders for protecting our communities. In the same way, we should recognize those who help people understand their rights, find their place and feel that they belong.

To our amazing ethnic media and community media family: You do not simply report on our communities. You help build our communities. Because when every community has a voice, Ontario becomes stronger.

To all my colleagues: This is a non-partisan bill. I ask every member on both sides of this House to support Bill 120. Let’s recognize the people whose voices have helped so many others find theirs. Together, let us appreciate ethnic media and community media. Let’s continue to work to build a better, stronger Ontario.

The Deputy Speaker (Mr. Ric Bresee): Further debate?

Mr. Sol Mamakwa: I just want to acknowledge the member from Mississauga–Malton for bringing this Bill 120.

When I listened at the beginning about his arrival in Canada, but also acknowledging the First Peoples of these lands and thanking them—throughout the last eight and a half years or so that we’ve been here, we go to different places, different cities across Ontario for committee work. I remember having breakfast with him one time, when he was sharing his story of when he arrived in Canada. One of the things that he talked about was filling out forms—and there was a check mark that said “Indian.” As you know, as First Nations people, we are called “Indians” under the Indian Act. He said he checked it, because he’s Indian. Then, I guess, when he went to submit his application or whatever he was signing up for, he said he was a different kind of Indian. I just wanted to share that. Anyway, those are the kinds of relationships that we create.

In Kiiwetinoong, I want to give a shout-out to all the local radio stations and media outlets serving our communities, and especially the ones that operate in Indigenous languages, whether it’s Mushkegowuk, Oji-Cree, also known as Anishininiimowin—Ojibway is Anishinaabemowin.

Wawatay Radio, which is based in Sioux Lookout but broadcasts all across the north, is one such outlet. They provide important communications for the people of Treaty 9, Treaty 3 and Treaty 5, telling stories from the very First Nations they broadcast to. Sometimes I’ll go outside and I’ll take a call and I’ll be speaking my language, talking to people in northwestern Ontario.

Wawatay was created in 1974, at a time when First Nations in the north were organizing themselves politically. Advocates recognized the need to have a First Nations media outlet to represent and serve the communities when other media outlets were not.

Wawatay’s monthly newsletter is printed in Cree, Anishininiimowin and Anishinaabemowin, and it goes across the First Nations in the north.

Waawaate Nandotamowin’s—which is radio—shows cover local and national news, music, community announcements, sporting events, and language programming. They also host call-in shows and special programs for youth, elders and women.

I want to share a quote from Xavier Kataquapit, who remembers the creation of Wawatay. Xavier said, “The name Wawatay was chosen because the news they would create and share in print on newspaper and over the airwaves as radio broadcasts was like the spirits of Wawatay,” which means the northern lights, “travelling to all the communities in the north.”

For over 50 years, Wawatay radio has been an essential resource for the people of Kiiwetinoong. It plays a key role in preserving our languages. For our language speakers, Wawatay radio is often the only way to access news in our languages.

We must support and we must uplift Wawatay News.

Again, I want to say kitchi meegwetch—a big thank you—to the member for Mississauga–Malton for bringing this bill forward and giving us an opportunity to speak about our appreciation for community media. Meegwetch for listening.

The Deputy Speaker (Mr. Ric Bresee): Further debate?

Ms. Mary-Margaret McMahon: It’s always a pleasure to rise in the House to stand with a bill that supports all Ontarians, so thank you to the lovely member from Mississauga–Malton for bringing this bill forward.

Multicultural and community media are the heartbeats of ridings across Ontario. They understand local sentiments, the varying needs of constituents, which neighbourhood groups exist and how they connect and diverge, influential community members, and new businesses on the rise. There is no better group to speak to if you want to know how a community works and what they need.

I feel so lucky to have several multicultural and community media outlets in the beautiful Beaches–East York area.

The Beach Metro news has a wonderful history that has been rooted in community from the very beginning. Beach Metro news is a non-profit and non-partisan community newspaper, a division of Ward 9 Community News Inc. This newspaper is where you go to find your weekend plans and the best places to shop locally, how you hear from neighbours, the best way to strike up a conversation, a hub for heartwarming stories to read over coffee, and the guide on how to help when your community is in trouble.

Founded in 1972 and published 23 times per year, Beach Metro news is a staple in Beaches–East York. Distributed by east-enders—my newspaper on my street is actually distributed by a four-year-old, with her mother accompanying her; they’re volunteers—and read by east-enders, it started with nine committed volunteers and flourished to a widely read publication with several staff.

I have to say—I always brag—Beach Metro news is more widely read in beautiful Beaches–East York than the Globe and Mail and the Toronto Star.

Beach Metro news’s first meeting was on January 11, with only nine people attending: Helen Hick, Jenny Wittrup, Shirley MacHattie, Bruce Budd, June Carson, Alderman Reid Scott, Dorothy Thomas, Sandi White and Doug White. With a smaller-than-expected turnout, another meeting was held on January 24 in the hopes of attracting more people.

As meetings progressed, the idea slowly became a reality, and it was decided that the paper would be called Ward 9 Community News and would be non-partisan. A masthead was chosen from five designs submitted. An editor to handle the day-to-day running of the paper would be hired for six months and would report to an editorial board, which would set editorial policy and represent the community. This board would be composed of eminent members of the community, such as ministers, school principals and business people, and would change every six months. Because there was no money to pay for staff, the editor and other staff would have to volunteer their services. To ensure the quality of the paper, the editor should have a newspaper background; Pepper Parr offered to take this on. The paper would be funded through advertising revenue. A local man with his own advertising business was hired to sell advertising, take a commission and turn over the proceeds within 60 days of publication.

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Shirley MacHattie stepped up to organize distribution of the first issue as it was to be free in every home and business in the area. Doug White registered the name of the paper, Ward 9 Community News, with city hall and established a bank account. As printing costs for the first four-page issue turned out to be $300, local groups were asked for funds to supplement their bank balance, which was only $34 at the time.

Merely two days before their first issue, the whole project was almost derailed when Norm Houghton suggested they cancel the first issue, reconsider the whole idea and start again after speaking with a neighbouring paper. His request was denied. The paper prevailed, thankfully. Two days later, on March 1, the first issue was published and distributed, and it has been beloved ever since.

Beautiful Beaches–East York is made even more special because it is home to one of the largest populations of Bengali Canadians. Brilliant Bangla Town offers rich cultures and traditions, scrumptious snacks, fabulous fabrics, and gracious gatherings. Moreover, Bangla Town is extremely civically engaged and community minded. The Weekly Bangla Mail is testament to that. Established in 2012, the Weekly Bangla Mail is an independent Bengali-language Canadian weekly newspaper established in Toronto. It is widely seen as Canada’s most read Bengali-language newspaper, serving Bengali Canadians through original reporting and extensive coverage of Canadian current affairs; namely politics, government policies, immigration, health care, education, business, public safety, municipal affairs, and community developments. It is a bridge between countries and a key form of collaboration and communication in our area. Its value cannot be overstated.

This bill is so much more than an appreciation week. Supporting multicultural and community media represents a decision to see and appreciate the diversity that is part of Ontario’s beautiful composition, and it is a move towards hearing and listening to every single one of the unique voices that contribute to Ontario’s symphony. These are things to celebrate. These perspectives are invaluable; when we listen to them, we are better for it. These media sources expose us to issues experienced by communities that we might otherwise not have known about, and they also offer nuanced solutions that are outside of the box, perhaps tried and tested in other jurisdictions. I urge the government to not take these perspectives for granted.

Multicultural and community media are true labours of love. They demand unimaginable time, effort and care to keep going. Every member of their team works 10 times harder to not just stay on top of current issues but to synthesize and translate these updates in accessible formats. Beyond appreciation, they deserve support and advocacy and are owed collaboration. This may look like saying yes when they reach out to you for comments or for an interview. It may also look like proactively reaching out to them to understand the views you are missing and strengthening your own plans.

In adopting this appreciation week, we need to think about what we actually mean when we say “appreciate.” When we go to a museum, sure, we can admire and applaud from afar—we can take a photo of the painting then move on. Alternatively, we can allow ourselves to feel inspired by it, dive into it, learn of the artist, the muse behind the art, the materials used. More importantly, we can share our knowledge, ask ourselves and others questions about how it makes us feel, what it reminds us of, what we think the artist would want us to know. This is what I would like from appreciation weeks—for appreciation to drive us to engagement. It is the same with the bill at hand. The government can simply acknowledge the appreciation week and extend well wishes, or we can do more.

Ontarians can face countless obstacles to participation—and to be clear, it is not due to a lack of interest or opinion. But language, income, jobs, your address—these can all be barriers that stop you from getting out and to engage in civic life. Maybe you are too far from your representative to show up and speak face to face, or your voting station is inaccessible. Perhaps invites to community events are not offered in your origin language, or maybe these events are always taking place when you are working a shift. These are all issues that investing in multicultural and local media can ameliorate.

Engaging with multicultural and community media permits knowledge to be disseminated to people who otherwise may not come to Queen’s Park and we may not meet. And it promotes mobilization. When more people know not just the names of the laws that are enacted but how they affect them and their specific communities, they are more likely to act, to share their input for bills, to start a community group to address a problem or to support a community member. That is what it’s all about. It does not matter whether these views are politically different than our own; what matters is that people are informed and are civically active of their own volition. After all, it is the views, experiences and expectations that differ from our own that open our minds up to new possibilities. We need someone to ask, “Why would you do that?” and “Why did you say it like that? What does that mean? How will you get this done? Who have you spoken to?” Without these questions, we are never forced to interrogate our own assumptions, strengthen our own beliefs or change them for the better.

And what this is truly about is accessibility. Politics needs to be accessible. Politics is too much inside baseball at times. Bills are written in legalese. The bill process can be unclear and, half the time, not followed. It is not clear to the general public where to find regulations and even what the regulations are and how you can weigh in on them. Too many bills are too big and come too fast. People cannot keep up.

We actually need civics taught in every grade, in my opinion, and at seniors’ homes and with community groups.

Multicultural and community media are integral to this project of accessibility. They convey news in a way that their readers will understand and provide a direct connection between Queen’s Park and the community.

But we need to build off their work too. As elected representatives, we have a duty to our constituents not only to bring their voices to Queen’s Park, but to bring the House to them. We should be the ones to get on the phone with them and talk through the bills, answer their questions and hear their concerns. Ontarians have a right to know what we are doing here, as it is their House, after all.

So I am extending my enthusiastic support for the bill. I’m looking forward to celebrating the legislation, and I’m even more excited to use it to strengthen our relationships with multicultural and community media and amplify their practice.

The Deputy Speaker (Mr. Ric Bresee): Further debate?

Mr. Aris Babikian: It gives me great pleasure to rise today and be a part of the debate on Bill 120, the Ethnic Media and Community Media Appreciation Week Act. I would like to start off by thanking my dear friend and colleague the MPP for Mississauga–Malton for introducing this important bill.

Speaker, I live and breathe ethnic media. As a former board member of the National Ethnic Press and Media Council of Canada and as the past representative of Horizon Weekly, I understand and value the impact that ethnic media has here in Ontario in many diverse communities. However, I have also witnessed the challenges and sacrifices family-run and individual media outlets have faced to be able to continuously publish their newspapers and keep their programs on air.

The ethnic media ensures that residents who come from diverse cultural groups are kept informed about what is going on here in Ontario and across Canada.

Just in my riding of Scarborough–Agincourt, which is one of the most diverse areas in Ontario, there are dozens of community and ethnic media organizations that operate, and I have seen first-hand the positive impact they have in the community.

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Ethnic media reaches millions of people in Canada and across Ontario. One in four Canadians’ mother tongue is not English or French. That is where cultural and community media comes in to ensure that they can bridge that gap. Regrettably, due to financial constraints, many media outlets have had to close their doors, which has led to a significant segment of our society being disconnected from their community.

This bill is one way to recognize their contribution to our society.

Speaker, I would be remiss not to mention three individuals who I could comfortably say have been the reason ethnic media still stand today and the reason why they continue to grow and be a strong voice here in Ontario. The first individual is Thomas Saras, president and chairman of the National Ethnic Press and Media Council of Canada, who is here with us in the media gallery—of course, we have other media representatives here, and my colleague will mention all their names individually—the second individual is Maria Saras-Voutsinas, who is the executive director; and the third person is Madeline Ziniak, the former national vice-president of OMNI Television. Thomas, Maria and Madeline, alongside their entire team, have dedicated their life to ethnic media and ensuring that their voices are always heard, and that despite changing economic realities and technological advancements, the presence of ethnic media is always alive and well.

The Deputy Speaker (Mr. Ric Bresee): Further debate?

Ms. Sandy Shaw: I do want to thank the member from Mississauga–Malton for bringing this bill forward. It is an important bill, and I support it wholeheartedly. I thank you for sharing your story and telling your story.

I appreciate that folks here are talking about the financial struggle of these ethnic media outlets. I would like to also say that arts in general are struggling under this government, with the cuts and the lack of funding to arts and also media, book publishing. It is a problem in this province when we are not funding arts properly to tell our stories, as has been shared with us.

I will just say this now, and then I won’t belabour it later: Unfortunately, we have a Premier who disparages the arts whenever he gets an opportunity. It’s unfortunate because the people who work in these outlets, the people who provide this kind of media, this kind of journalism—they study the arts, they tell our stories, so for the Premier to call people studying this “basket weaving” and to disparage this all the time is a huge disservice to our province. Who is going to tell the stories if it’s not students who are studying this to be journalists, to be artists, to tell our stories?

Here’s a perfect example of why it’s so important to preserve our stories: Canada and Ireland are participating in something called Canada-Ireland 180. This is to commemorate the Great Hunger, which was the Irish famine, when folks had to flee because of forced starvation in their country. In Hamilton, at the time when this happened, the population was 7,000 people, and there were 16,000 immigrants who arrived in Hamilton, overwhelming the population. That heritage lasts today in our city—we have the Irish citizen of the year every year; we have Corktown. We also have something called the Global Irish Famine Way statue in Hamilton at the waterfront, and it connects us to the Famine Way across the world. It’s really poignant, if you go and see it. It’s a pair of bronze child’s shoes, which represents the loss of children and the loss that people experienced. This is a story that was told that lasts today.

I also want to share that in Hamilton we have at least 80,000 Hamiltonians who are of Italian descent. We are second only to Toronto, the GTA, in terms of people who identify as Italian. Their cultural contribution to our community is hugely appreciated. We appreciate Festitalia and all the arts that they bring.

Community media, television and radio are so important.

In my city, we have Cable 14. Community television is so important for telling our story.

We have McMaster University and Mohawk College, and their programming covers all kinds of new communities. They have Portuguese programming. They have Armenian Radio Hour. They have a South Asian program, and Alexander the Great for our Greek-speaking communities.

There are so many here.

The loss of our community newspapers is something that is disturbing. We should be supporting them financially so they can continue to tell our stories.

Finally, I want thank the member for sharing your story. It was really important. It was poignant. I liked that the member from Kiiwetinoong added a bit of humour to it.

Those stories need to be preserved, and we need a government that funds these organizations that are doing the important work, because telling our stories and preserving our culture is evergreen. It’s 180 years ago that the Irish came to our country—it’s newcomers now. We need to make sure that those stories don’t get lost and that we have a government that actually spends the money and invests in what they need to keep this—

The Deputy Speaker (Mr. Ric Bresee): Further debate?

Mr. Anthony Leardi: The first thing I want to do is thank my colleague the member from Mississauga–Malton for bringing this bill forward. He was one of the first seasoned and veteran MPPs I met when I came to Toronto. He is a kind man, a gentle man. He has a smooth voice and a smooth character, and I like him very much. I want to thank him for bringing this bill forward. It’s called An Act to proclaim Ethnic Media and Community Media Appreciation Week. And I’ll take a moment to appreciate some of my community media.

First, thank you to the Harrow News. Harrow News is a newspaper founded in 1931, operating in and around the town of Harrow. It serves Harrow and the surrounding communities of Colchester North and Colchester South. Harrow News has a fantastic reporter, Adam Gault. Adam is doing a fine, fine job for his community and for the people of Harrow and the surrounding areas.

Let’s talk about the Essex Free Press. The Essex Free Press was founded in 1879. It is published by London Publishing. Their primary reporter is Sylene Argent. Sylene is doing a fantastic job reporting for the Essex Free Press, frequently not only covering Essex but also surrounding communities, including Kingsville, Lakeshore and even Amherstburg.

Sylene, thank you for all the work that you’re doing.

I want to talk about the River Town Times. The River Town Times is serving my hometown of Amherstburg, Ontario. The primary reporter for the River Town Times is Ron Giofu. Ron is a pillar of the town of Amherstburg. Everybody knows and loves Ron.

Ron, thank you for all the work that you’re doing for Amherstburg and the surrounding communities.

I want to talk about CKBG radio, our newest community media outlet. CKBG is “The Burg” on 107.9 FM. It was launched in 2023 by Marty Adler. His son Greg Adler now runs that radio station, serving Amherstburg and the surrounding communities.

Greg, thank you for what you do. We all love your radio station.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker, for allowing me to speak this evening.

The Deputy Speaker (Mr. Ric Bresee): Further debate?

MPP Lise Vaugeois: I also want to thank the member from Mississauga–Malton for bringing this forward. It has been an interesting question for me to pursue, because in Thunder Bay there are not a lot of ethnic papers. There’s not a lot of formal media. There’s certainly some communications for the Indigenous community—Wawatay News, which our member from Kiiwetinoong spoke of before—and there is a Finnish-language paper. But what really struck me about this was that this is an opportunity to talk about the amazing communities, the amazing people and what they are contributing to Thunder Bay. I think of:

—the Karen community, who are refugees from Burma, and they share their culture by bringing their choir—by the way, that’s an arts training;

—Afro-Vibe Fest, based, again, on performances and arts;

—Bonjour, the French cultural festival;

—Festa Italiana;

—St. Urho’s, from the Finnish community—I believe St. Urho chases all the grasshoppers off the fields;

—the Tapestry Women Network—incredible—arts, music, fashion;

—Anishinaabe Keeshigun—many, many Indigenous powwows, which always feature incredible creative arts, crafts and music;

—Association des francophones du Nord-Ouest de l’Ontario;

—Raag-Rung Music Circle—they bring incredible performers from India in the classical music tradition, bring the whole community together to listen to this incredible music, and then they raise funds that go to support scholarships for other local music students.

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I also had a chance to go back and look at historical Black newspapers—Voice of the Fugitive, from 1851; the Provincial Freeman; the Dawn of Tomorrow—that took up civil rights, Black arts, churches and social life.

All of these have been important.

I do want to say that anybody who’s writing for a journal has an arts background. And I see that in today’s Trillium the Premier says students should pick programs that help them get jobs, instead of going into the arts. I wonder who he thinks is providing the staff and all the work, the public service in this building, except for people who have those skills. I won’t dwell on that.

I do want to applaud the member. It’s a little bit different in our community, but we have very, very rich cultural opportunities to connect with newcomers in our community, and I appreciate that very much.

The Deputy Speaker (Mr. Ric Bresee): Further debate?

Mr. Sheref Sabawy: I rise today in proud support of Bill 120, the Ethic Media and Community Media Appreciation Week Act. I want to thank my colleague the member for Mississauga–Malton for bringing this bill forward. It is a very important bill. I see the heart of this bill every single week in my home city of Mississauga.

Mississauga is one of the most vibrant, diverse communities in Canada, maybe in the world. It is a city where roughly 57% of our residents were not born in Canada. We are home to people of every ethnicity, race, faith and cultural background. It is about building an authentic cultural mosaic where every culture is accepted and integrated. People of every tradition, language and culture are embraced, valued and integrated into our shared story.

In today’s digital age, our media landscape is shifting rapidly. As more people turn to online platforms, community newsrooms and independent ethnic outlets have become very important. These may be small media businesses, but they have a large media footprint, with thousands of daily followers. Their influence on our news, our media and our culture is important. They need to be recognized and to be supported. That’s why we appreciate and respect these organizations as full participants in our economy and society.

Additionally, language should not be a barrier to cultural inclusion. This is about integrating ethnic media into Canadian culture. We can no longer exclude community groups; all must be accepted and integrated.

This bill is about recognizing their contribution to our democracy and making sure every Ontarian family feels seen, heard and truly at home.

The Deputy Speaker (Mr. Ric Bresee): Further debate?

MPP Billy Denault: I want to give a big shout-out to my friend the member from Mississauga–Malton for bringing this issue forward and giving me the opportunity to speak about something that’s very important to the people of Renfrew–Nipissing–Pembroke, and that certainly is the importance of community media.

Across rural Ontario, we are seeing a changing media landscape. Small-town newspapers that once provided weekly coverage are disappearing, and communities are increasingly at risk of becoming what has been called “a news desert,” where residents have limited access to local news.

A TVO story titled “What Happens When a Community Loses its Newspaper” explored this issue, following the potential closure of the Eganville Leader in February 2026. At the time, the paper circulated approximately 5,700 copies a week. It would have been a significant loss for any rural community. Thankfully, the Leader found a buyer and continues to serve Renfrew county.

We are fortunate to have other local outlets in print, radio and online, including MyFM, Valley Heritage Radio, Pure Country 96.7, the Pembroke Observer, the Valley Gazette, North Renfrew Times, and many others. These organizations do more than report the news; they keep our communities connected.

During our recent municipal elections, local media helped residents understand the candidates, the issues and the decisions facing their communities. They gave people an opportunity to hear from candidates and stay informed about what was happening in their own backyards.

I want to share a letter to the editor from the latest edition of the Eganville Leader just this morning, written by a constituent of mine. Reflecting on the Leader’s municipal coverage, he wrote, “Let me address your latest (October, 28th) edition. I have some idea of the magnitude of the task of covering municipal elections across a landscape as vast as Renfrew county. What I was able to digest on Wednesday morning blew me away. You posted results from every municipality, including South Algonquin. Some numbers it should be pointed out were not available until very late Monday evening. What was even more remarkable was the comprehensive coverage from so many communities where noteworthy contests took place. This largely included photos and interviews with both the successful and unsuccessful candidates. I suspect that some of those interviews didn’t take place until Tuesday morning. All this while still putting together your weekly coverage of Valley happenings, getting it to and back from the printers and in mailboxes and on newsstands on schedule.

“I extend my congratulations and gratitude to everyone at the Leader who made the extra effort to ‘get er done’ as they say. The Leader is unique and you’re the ones who make it so”—from John Yakabuski from Barry’s Bay.

Hon. Steve Clark: Wow! Yak is smart.

MPP Billy Denault: I agree with the House leader, and I think that says it all.

In closing, I want to thank the journalists, broadcasters, editors and everyone who works in the community media across the Ottawa Valley. I want to thank you for keeping residents informed, telling our stories and making sure that the voices of rural communities continue to be heard.

Community media is an important part of what keeps our communities connected, and it deserves our recognition and support.

Thank you to the member from Mississauga–Malton for bringing this forward. Congratulations.

The Deputy Speaker (Mr. Ric Bresee): Further debate? Further debate?

I turn to the member, who has two minutes to reply.

Mr. Deepak Anand: I have too much to unpack in two minutes.

I want to start by thanking my federated Indian brother. Hopefully, one day I will share a breakfast with you in your community.

I want to thank the member from Beaches–East York for your support.

To the member from Hamilton West–Ancaster–Dundas: Thank you for your support and talking about the challenges of the ethnic media.

Thank you to the member from Scarborough–Agincourt for talking about the positive impact the ethnic media is making.

Of course, my friend from Essex, who always delivers more in less—thank you for your support for the community media.

I’m just going to add my thanks to, of course, the member from Renfrew–Nipissing–Pembroke for sharing your support of local community media.

And I can’t say enough for my colleague the member from Mississauga–Erin Mills, who is doing an incredible job, for your support.

There are many people who supported along with this—the member from Cambridge, my Irish brother; and the member from Scarborough Centre. Thank you for your support.

The member from Thunder Bay–Superior North talked about how we all are birds from the same nest. Thank you for talking about the positive contribution of ethnic and community media.

I hope I have covered everybody, and if I haven’t, I apologize.

Speaker, some of the people who are here who I want to recognize: from the National Ethnic Press and Media Council of Canada, Thomas S. Saras; from Hashtag Media, Nitin Chopra; from Voice of Toronto TV, Anjum Malik; from Uthayan newspaper, Nagamany Logendralingam; Krishnasamy Harendran; from Roobam Media Group, Ramsankr Sivanathan; from Behind Me Media, Kana Selva and Sarah Hasnain; and from Greek media, Demetris Vohaitis. They had a choice to stay and watch on TV, but they came here to support the ethnic media.

Thank you, each one of you, for being here.

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The Deputy Speaker (Mr. Ric Bresee): The time provided for private members’ public business has expired.

Mr. Anand has moved second reading of Bill 120, An Act to proclaim Ethnic Media and Community Media Appreciation Week.

Is it the pleasure of the House that the motion carry? Carried.

Second reading agreed to.

The Deputy Speaker (Mr. Ric Bresee): Pursuant to standing order 100(h), the bill is referred to the Committee of the Whole House.

To the member.

Mr. Deepak Anand: Heritage and culture committee.

The Deputy Speaker (Mr. Ric Bresee): Is the majority in favour of this bill being referred to the Standing Committee on Heritage, Infrastructure and Cultural Policy? Agreed. The bill is referred to the Standing Committee on Heritage, Infrastructure and Cultural Policy.

All matters relating to private members’ public business having been completed, we will now move to the late show.

Pursuant to standing order 36, the question that this House do now adjourn is deemed to have been made.

Adjournment Debate

Government accountability

The Deputy Speaker (Mr. Ric Bresee): The member for Nepean has given notice of dissatisfaction with the answer to a question given by the Minister of Colleges, Universities, Research Excellence and Security. The member has up to five minutes to debate the matter, and the minister or parliamentary assistant may reply for up to five minutes.

I turn to the member from Nepean.

MPP Tyler Watt: Thank you, Speaker. Yes, I was very dissatisfied with that answer. It was a clear-cut question.

After repeated years of warnings about potential fraud and OSAP going to a handful of private career colleges, with Academy of Learning being at the forefront of this, we recently learned of a big bombshell from the Canadian Press—shout-out to Allison Jones; incredible work she’s doing. We learned that thousands of OSAP applications came from just one location: from Academy of Learning. The question was simple: How much taxpayer money did this government send to them despite repeated years of warnings, since 2023? I cannot emphasize that enough. This minister likes to repeat, over and over and over again, that these are serious criminal allegations and that they’re taking it seriously. I almost have his remarks memorized at this point—it’s always the same. Let’s recall how we got here. This government created a loophole. They opened it up for online-only, asynchronous courses. I understand why we had to do that—it was COVID; we wanted to make sure that people could continue their education. But that loophole was never closed. In 2023, Career Colleges Ontario warned this government multiple times—2024, warned again, said call the police; 2025, still no action.

We’re now in November 2026, and this government has ripped away OSAP from thousands of innocent students across Ontario. These are our future early childhood educators, social workers, lab techs, dental hygienists, massage therapists—all people who are trying to just better their lives and get into the workforce, maybe even provide a little bit more for their families. The stories that I’ve been hearing from these people are heartbreaking. One of the things that really sticks out to me—I’m going to quote my wonderful colleague from Ottawa South—is that when you go to graduations there, you don’t see their parents in the audience; you see their kids. These are people who are working hard. These are taxpayers.

Imagine being in your program, seven weeks in, after being promised your OSAP loan since the summer. You got enrolled, and the government abandons you and says, “Figure it out on your own, or wait till January; maybe we’ll have something then.”

Well, I don’t have a lot of faith in this minister.

As the days progress, the more we learn about this story and this scandal. Ontarians and taxpayers deserve accountability. That’s something that this government ran on in 2018—transparency, accountability, respecting the taxpayer dollars. Well, this is as big as it’s ever going to get. Where is that respect? Where is that accountability?

The minister says, “We’ve hired KPMG to audit the colleges.” Great. We know we’re never going to see that—they will cherry-pick some data to maybe go along with the narrative that this minister is trying to spin day in, day out, but we’re never going to see the full reports.

And here’s the bigger issue: KPMG isn’t going to investigate this minister and this ministry’s handling in creating such a colossal mess of OSAP. We need to know what happened. There are just too many questions about why this was allowed to go on for years.

And at the end of the day, even if we ignore all of that, it’s students who are suffering. The stories are heartbreaking. The minister said today that he’s answering emails and he’s on the phones with them; I don’t know if I buy that, because if he was, he would do something about it. He would have already corrected this major mess-up for those innocent students.

My colleague in Kingston and the Islands—Trillium College in his riding was inspected this past summer. So why are they suffering the consequences? Why have they had OSAP ripped away from them? It just doesn’t make sense.

When we’re here in question period, I get that it’s very theatrical sometimes—most of the time. I never expect an actual answer anymore. But it would be nice if the minister would actually be honest with the opposition, with Ontarians, about what’s going on. Students deserve answers. Ontarians deserve answers.

And what has been happening—it’s just not acceptable. It’s cruel. We have to make these students whole again. It’s probably already too late—so now we have to start with what that’s going to look like. Are we going to forgive those loans? It wasn’t their fault.

Thank you for your time, Speaker.

The Deputy Speaker (Mr. Ric Bresee): I will caution the member to be careful with his parliamentary language.

I turn to the member from Whitby.

Mr. Lorne Coe: Concerns have been uncovered through our ministry’s investigations into the misuse of OSAP at private post-secondary institutions. What we’ve seen is deeply troubling, with serious allegations of fraud and wrongdoers taking advantage of programs intended to support students in pursuing an education. These are taxpayer dollars meant to give students the opportunity to develop the skills they need to build a successful future, not to line the pockets of individuals looking to exploit our post-secondary system. Our government has zero tolerance for this kind of behaviour. That is why we’ve spent months investigating these matters, engaged KPMG to conduct an independent third-party audit, and referred these concerns to law enforcement.

Speaker, I want to address the comments made by the members opposite regarding the Auditor General. The Auditor General was notified of this matter in early October, well before the third party brought forward its motion. And as members opposite know, the Auditor General is independent and whether she chooses to investigate a matter referred to her is entirely her decision.

When it comes to KPMG’s audit, I want to be equally clear. We will release the information we can, when it’s appropriate to do so, without compromising the ongoing audit or any criminal investigation. While transparency is important, so is ensuring that these bad actors are held accountable for their actions. We have continued to speak publicly about this matter as the audit progresses, and we will continue providing updates to students and taxpayers.

While the opposition continues to fearmonger and focus on political attacks, our government is putting in the work to strengthen Ontario’s post-secondary system and create more opportunities for students. And that work goes well beyond addressing the serious misconduct we uncovered.

Earlier this fall, our government announced a historic $1.7-billion investment to fund more than 70,000 additional seats in high-demand programs across the province, the largest expansion of its kind in over a decade. That includes:

—40,200 seats in STEM programs;

—16,100 seats in health care programs;

—7,900 seats in education programs;

—3,800 seats in skilled trades programs; and

—3,000 seats in programs responding to local labour market needs.

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Speaker, these aren’t just numbers. These are more nurses caring for patients in our hospitals, more teachers educating the next generation in our classrooms, more engineers supporting our mining and manufacturing sectors, and more skilled workers building the infrastructure and communities our province depends on. This is what investing in Ontario’s future looks like.

While the opposition continues to focus on political games, our government remains focused on strengthening the integrity of our post-secondary system and expanding opportunities for students, because these priorities go hand in hand. We must ensure taxpayer dollars are protected from bad actors while continuing to make the investments that give students the opportunity to succeed. And that is exactly what our government is doing. We will continue holding bad actors accountable, protecting the integrity of OSAP, and making historic investments in Ontario’s public post-secondary sector, because our focus remains on the students, the institutions and the skilled workforce that will build a stronger Ontario.

Government accountability

The Deputy Speaker (Mr. Ric Bresee): Next, the member for Ottawa South has given notice of dissatisfaction with the answer to a question given by the Minister of Colleges, Universities, Research Excellence and Security. The member has up to five minutes to debate the matter, and a minister or parliamentary assistant may reply for up to five minutes.

I recognize the member from Ottawa South.

Mr. John Fraser: Somebody better pull the fire alarm because that response just shows me that the dumpster fire that is the government’s response to OSAP is burning brightly. It’s absolutely incredible that we hear the same thing again and again and again.

We simply asked today a couple of things. The first thing is, the government knows that they can ask the Auditor General, under section 17 of the Auditor General Act—they can request a special audit, and that audit will be for all the people of Ontario, all the members of the Legislature. And they’ll audit the ministry’s response.

The government has their hand-picked auditors at KPMG to produce a report that’s going to study the college that fleeced the Ontario taxpayers, but it’s not going to take a look at what the government did.

We know that the government gave $385 million to seven colleges in one year. And then we know that two years ago, they gave $219 million to three colleges—that’s two years ago. It’s the second question that we asked. We also know, two years ago—we don’t know how much money the government has given them. And they shouldn’t have given them any more money after giving them—knowing that they actually needed to be inspected. So, $219 million—two years ago.

What did they give last year? Well, the government wouldn’t tell us in their answer to the question. That’s why I’m here tonight. There were 8,500 OSAP applications from one location, one Internet address. That’s a pretty big red flag. If you do the math around that, that would be somewhere between $170 million and $500 million. So the question that I think is fair, because the government gave them money last year—oh, I forgot this part: They were warned 10 months before but were late on the inspection, and the money got sent. They delayed the inspection, and the money got sent for the full year anyway. Oops. So it’s a little, teeny tiny, or as the Minister of Finance likes to say, itsy-bitsy—whatever it was—mistake, somewhere between $170 million and half a billion dollars. So I think it’s a pretty fair question, to say, “Well, what was it—$170 million, $200 million, $250 million, $300 million, $500 million? How much was it?” It’s a fair question. The minister couldn’t answer that. I think people need to know. We will find out eventually. But it’s all part of the government’s effort to distract and deflect and cover up what has happened here—cover up how much money went out the door. It’s really important that we get to the bottom of this.

But there’s something else that’s going on right now that I think in some ways is a bigger, more serious problem—and we’ve given example of example of example of this all the way through this debate. People with kids, mature people who took a risk, went to a private career college, went to a school like trucking school and said, “I’m going to try to better myself. I want to get better skills because I want to do more for my family”—so they took a risk. They took a loan. I’m going to underscore that: a loan. We’re not talking about grants. They’re going to pay it back. Most of them will pay it back. They took a risk, and the government is using a cannon to swat a fly, by cutting them all off at the knees. It is unbelievable. Every student, whether they’re on OSAP, whether they were on Better Jobs Ontario or the Ontario Job Grant or Learn and Stay—cut off seven, eight weeks into their course. That’s a bigger problem that needs to be addressed right now. There needs to be relief for those people. There needs to be fairness for those people. We’ll get to the bottom of how much money the government frittered away—and that’s a nice term—shovelled out the door. The government needs to take care of those folks who trusted the government—and then the government abandoned them and let them down.

The Deputy Speaker (Mr. Ric Bresee): I recognize the member from Whitby.

Mr. Lorne Coe: I rise this evening to address the concerns raised by the member from Ottawa South regarding OSAP and private career colleges.

I want to reiterate that any misuse of OSAP is entirely unacceptable. This program exists to ensure students can pursue an education and build meaningful careers; not to be exploited by wrongdoers looking to take advantage of the system.

And while the member opposite has expressed dissatisfaction with the answer provided, I believe it’s important to walk through the facts and the actions our government has taken.

In late 2024, our ministry identified a growing volume of OSAP applications at career colleges that raised serious concerns.

In January 2025, Career Colleges Ontario wrote to the ministry outlining similar concerns.

In May 2025, following information provided by the federal government, we expanded our review.

By July 2025, enhanced, targeted inspections were under way.

And in May 2026, our government issued non-renewal notices to six career college campuses, resulting in the suspension of their OSAP eligibility.

But our investigations did not stop there. We continued gathering evidence. It became increasingly clear that these concerns could extend well beyond a small number of institutions.

That is why, in August 2026, our government brought in KPMG, an independent, third-party auditor, to examine the broader integrity of OSAP across private institutions. And what was uncovered, even in the preliminary findings, left our government with no choice but to take further action.

In October 2026, we paused OSAP payments to private institutions, referred the matter to the Ontario Provincial Police and notified the Ontario Auditor General.

Speaker, these decisions were not taken lightly. If what investigators have uncovered proves to be what we believe it is, then we could be looking at conduct that is nothing short of criminal. And those responsible must be held accountable.

Let me also remind the member opposite that every tip our government receives regarding improper OSAP usage is taken seriously. In fact, we’ve conducted over 3,200 OSAP investigations since 2020. These investigations are complex and can take more than a year to gather the necessary evidence. And that work continues today.

I also want to recognize the students who have done nothing wrong but have found themselves caught up in this situation. These are individuals who enrolled in good faith, who are working toward their futures and who deserve to have their concerns heard. We continue to hear directly from students, and work is under way to explore financial options, including potential low-interest loans through third-party financial institutions to support them through this transition.

But we cannot overlook serious allegations of wrongdoing simply because taking action is difficult. Every OSAP dollar must go toward its intended purpose: supporting legitimate education, protecting student success and, yes, ensuring the integrity of the system. That is what students and hard-working taxpayers deserve.

And, Speaker, our government will continue working to uncover the full extent of this alleged misuse and ensure that those responsible are held accountable.

The Deputy Speaker (Mr. Ric Bresee): There being no further matters to debate, pursuant to standing order 36(c), I deem the motion to adjourn to be carried.

This House stands adjourned until 9 a.m. tomorrow.

The House adjourned at 1911.