Diane Finley

[Business of Supply, November 1st, 2006]

Mr. Chair, I thank my hon. colleague for that fine presentation of some of the things that Canada's new government is doing to promote the skilled trades and participation in them.

What he did not mention was that we did all this within the first 100 days of taking office. We are investing over $500 million in these bold new initiatives to encourage people to become apprentices, and we anticipate to take up to 100,000 apprentices between these two programs. That is really a good start.

We have just announced another program for which we are providing support. It is women building futures. It is in conjunction with the Canada-Alberta affordable housing program and Western Economic Diversification.

[Business of Supply, November 1st, 2006]

Mr. Chair, all existing commitments are going to be honoured when it comes to literacy. Programs that are currently receiving money will receive it until the end of their term because this is important to us.

Going forward, we are going to be exercising more stringent control over projects that are funded, for the simple reason that we want to make sure we are targeting our national priorities, getting value for money and funding programs that achieve real results.

[Business of Supply, November 1st, 2006]

Mr. Chair, one of the things we want to do when we create these spaces is make them sustainable. That means having qualified people working within them. We are working with the various programs. We have several within my department that help aboriginals learn.

I was speaking with a group a few months ago. We are looking at a partnership where we could do just what the member is suggesting within the context of creating new child care spaces. These people are really excited because they believe that the $100 a month aboriginals are receiving for their children under the age of six through the universal child care benefit will go a long way to help them.

[Business of Supply, November 1st, 2006]

Mr. Chair, in fact we are working to find the best way to create spaces on reserve and off reserve for aboriginals. That is part of the mandate that has been assigned to the ministerial advisory committee on the space creation initiatives. I am looking forward to seeing the results of those consultations.

[Business of Supply, November 1st, 2006]

Mr. Chair, as I made clear, that is within the discussion of the fiscal balance. My colleague, the hon. Minister of Finance, is undertaking those discussions. Until that conversation is held and settled, I am not in a position to give the hon. member opposite the assurances for which she is looking.

[Business of Supply, November 1st, 2006]

Mr. Chair, I categorically deny ever making a statement like that. If the member has any evidence to the contrary, please present it to me. I have never taken that view and I certainly never expressed that view because I do not believe in it.

What I said was here would not be any money going toward operating costs of the child care spaces that we intended to create. We have made it very clear from the beginning that our intention is to provide capital money to get the spaces created.

What we believe in is freedom of choice, freedom for parents to choose the child care that meets their the needs of their families.

[Business of Supply, November 1st, 2006]

Mr. Chair, we are making every effort to ensure that all Canadians who are entitled to GIS receive it. We send out four notices a year. We rely on income tax filings for information. We send four reminders to encourage seniors, who are in need of this, to apply. They must apply because every year the financial circumstances change.

We are looking at technological ways to improve that because we want to get as close to 100% as we possibly can.

[Business of Supply, November 1st, 2006]

Perhaps, Mr. Chair, the hon. member did not hear when I explained earlier that one of the problems with the summer works program, as well intentioned as it is, is that it is providing benefits right across the country, regardless of need.

Frankly, we have extremely tough times filling jobs in high employment areas like Calgary, Edmonton and Fort McMurray. Employers there were getting these same subsidies to hire students when they could not even hire students without a subsidy. We will be refocusing that money on helping the students who really need the help getting jobs, those in rural areas, those facing disabilities and those at risk.

[Business of Supply, November 1st, 2006]

Mr. Chair, Canada's new government has taken decisions that will make substantial investments in developing the skills of people in the skilled trades. These are investing in the people through our apprenticeship incentive grant, our employers incentive grants to hire employees and our the tool tax deduction for those working in the trade. That will benefit 800,000 tradespeople.

[Business of Supply, November 1st, 2006]

Mr. Chair, as I indicated to the member just a few moments ago, the finance minister indicated in the House today that the Canada-Ontario agreement would be fully funded.

Given the broader fiscal balance issue, no decision has been made on the Manitoba and Saskatchewan situation.