Mr. Speaker, I rise in the House for the first time in my new career as a federal politician to congratulate the citizens of my riding of Barrie—Simcoe—Bradford for their magnificent community spirit and fund-raising efforts which have resulted in the development of the new Royal Victoria Hospital.
I was honoured to participate on September 13 with the Lieutenant-Governor and the minister of health for Ontario as we celebrated together this splendid new facility.
It was truly a happy occasion.
The 297 bed facility will be the regional hospital for all of Simcoe County and beyond. It is the result of the impressive Building on a Century campaign which saw the community raise $15 million toward its construction.
The new hospital features over $25 million in state of the art equipment and will be the location of Ontario's newest breast screening site.