Thank you very much, Mr. Chair.
Once again, my comments are directed to the New Brunswick Federation of Labour.
The situation today in New Brunswick and throughout much of Atlantic Canada is very similar to that in Eastern Quebec. In the Gaspé region, in Rimouski or in Rivière-du-Loup, we see more or less the same types of businesses, primarily ones involved in the fishery. Recently, the Conservative government announced investments of nearly $1 billion in the EI program. The government informed us that about 190,000 people belonging to a specific category of workers would be affected by this funding announcement. If I'm not mistaken, they are people who have not had any work stoppages in the past five years. This does nothing at all for the people of Eastern Quebec. Fishery workers are seasonal workers. Obviously, they were not able to work during certain periods of the year.
Do you really think that strengthening EI benefits will address the problems of fishery and forestry workers and help them in any tangible way?