Thank you, Mr. Chair.
I would like to welcome our witnesses here. I was touched by the presentations of the witnesses representing workers experiencing some hardships, notably those of Mr. Céré and Mr. Georgetti.
I agree with them that those most in need of government incentives and assistance are the people who are losing their jobs and are being treated unfairly at this time.
My question is for Mr. Céré and Mr. Georgetti. TheMinister of Financemaintains that he consulted with members of the public, but were you at least consulted before he drafted his budget?
As you know, the Liberal Party has announced that it will support this budget, despite having some questions and many reservations. How do you feel about our democratic system, when one party bows to a minority government simply because it does not want to defeat it and create additional election or organization problems for itself? What do you see in store for the future, given that these two parties have agreed on a budget that fails to meet the needs of the people?
I would also like to include a third person, Ms. Byers, in the discussion of pay equity. The measures proposed in the bill would deprive women of their legitimate rights to equal pay for work of equal value.
So then, how do you feel about our fine system of democracy?