So what happened to the $57 billion?
Evidence of meeting #6 for Finance in the 41st Parliament, 2nd Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was account.
A video is available from Parliament.
Evidence of meeting #6 for Finance in the 41st Parliament, 2nd Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was account.
A video is available from Parliament.
4:45 p.m.
Chief, Labour, Market Employment Learning, Department of Finance
Again, the account was simply closed.
4:45 p.m.
NDP
4:45 p.m.
Chief, Labour, Market Employment Learning, Department of Finance
That's correct.
4:45 p.m.
NDP
Peggy Nash NDP Parkdale—High Park, ON
Okay.
The CEIFB was created to set the EI rates independently. Is that correct?
4:45 p.m.
Director, Legislative Policy Analysis, Employment Insurance Policy, Skills and Employment Branch, Department of Human Resources and Skills Development
That's right.
4:45 p.m.
NDP
Peggy Nash NDP Parkdale—High Park, ON
In how many years did the CEIFB set rates completely independently of the federal government?
4:45 p.m.
Director, Legislative Policy Analysis, Employment Insurance Policy, Skills and Employment Branch, Department of Human Resources and Skills Development
I'm not a hundred per cent on, but I think it was.... In the first couple of years, when the legislation was put in place for the CEIFB, the mechanisms for them to actually set the rate hadn't been fully established. It took a couple of years before they actually set the rate. I think in total, there were one or two years in which the board set the rate.
4:45 p.m.
NDP
Peggy Nash NDP Parkdale—High Park, ON
For one or two years they set the rate. Are you saying that for two years they set the rate without intervention from the federal government?
4:45 p.m.
Director, Legislative Policy Analysis, Employment Insurance Policy, Skills and Employment Branch, Department of Human Resources and Skills Development
Well, when you say intervention by the federal government, the rates are basically set by mechanisms in establishing the legislation, and when the board set the rate, it followed those mechanisms.
4:45 p.m.
NDP
Peggy Nash NDP Parkdale—High Park, ON
How much was spent on or by the CEIFB, the financing board, in each year of its existence and in total? How much did they spend?
4:45 p.m.
Director, Legislative Policy Analysis, Employment Insurance Policy, Skills and Employment Branch, Department of Human Resources and Skills Development
I don't have the total number for each year, but in the last year of operations, their budget came in at $1.2 million.
4:45 p.m.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative James Rajotte
Could you submit the answer for the other years to the committee later on?
4:45 p.m.
Director, Legislative Policy Analysis, Employment Insurance Policy, Skills and Employment Branch, Department of Human Resources and Skills Development
Yes.
4:45 p.m.
NDP
Peggy Nash NDP Parkdale—High Park, ON
This body was created in 2009. At that time, all of this money that had been contributed by workers and employers was put into general revenue. There was nothing in the fund so it started out with zero, at a time when we were still dealing with high unemployment from the most severe recession, from the great depression.
This fund has never really operated in the way it was meant to, and we still don't have the money that was eliminated back in 2009—
4:45 p.m.
NDP
Peggy Nash NDP Parkdale—High Park, ON
—and now it's going to be changed again. Why?
What good has the board been?
4:45 p.m.
Director, Legislative Policy Analysis, Employment Insurance Policy, Skills and Employment Branch, Department of Human Resources and Skills Development
I'm not in a position to judge that question.
I can explain that the new mechanism coming in 2016 for purposes of establishing the 2017 rate is designed to be open, transparent, and will be set by the EI Commission, which is a tripartite body with representation of both business and labour. Going forward—
4:45 p.m.
NDP
Peggy Nash NDP Parkdale—High Park, ON
The government consistently ignored the advice of the board, so I'm wondering why the board was even set up.
4:45 p.m.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative James Rajotte
We'll have to return to that in a later round.
Thank you, Ms. Nash.
Mr. Keddy, go ahead, please.
4:50 p.m.
Conservative
Gerald Keddy Conservative South Shore—St. Margaret's, NS
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Welcome, witnesses.
Before I start I'd like to recognize the change to fisheries EI that's in the budget. That was a needed change and it was important that it be brought in. We've encouraged fishermen for years to be multi-species fishermen, to be stakeholders in their industry, to work outside their industry, and then to turn around and not be able to combine fishermen's EI and regular EI was an oversight by the government.
I think you actually mentioned this in your remarks, but I didn't quite hear you. How far back will that be retroactive?
4:50 p.m.
Director General, Employment Insurance Policy, Skills and Employment Branch, Department of Human Resources and Skills Development
The changes will go back to April 7, 2013, so essentially the previous treatment of income will be put back in place.
4:50 p.m.
Conservative
Gerald Keddy Conservative South Shore—St. Margaret's, NS
So it will be for most of this fiscal year.