Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Good morning to you all. I thank you for being here and for your presentations.
My first questions will be directed to Mr. Létourneau.
First of all, thank you for your statement.
You have stressed the importance of maintaining subsidies for workers in the cultural, hospitality and tourism sectors, which have been hit hard. We understand that this must be done as long as the pandemic lasts.
You also emphasized the importance of Ottawa adequately funding health. This echoes studies by the Parliamentary Budget Officer and the Conference Board of Canada, which point to the debt levels of the provinces and show that they will eventually be unable to sustain their spending levels. So Ottawa has to play a role in that.
Also, you talked about the importance of doing a thorough reform of employment insurance. This echoes, among other things, what former Bank of Canada Governor Poloz said to this committee, that the system collapsed as soon as the pandemic began. It is important to have good coverage for atypical and self-employed seasonal workers.
Of course, there's also Davie.
Finally, you spoke of the green stimulus. In the United States, there is a debate about the need for the Biden administration's $1.9-trillion stimulus package. That program has echoes here as well. Next Monday, Ms. Freeland will present her budget to us, and she told us last fall that it would include a stimulus package of $70 billion to $100 billion.
Feel free to address the other topics I mentioned, but I'd like you to elaborate on your expectations for the stimulus package that is to be announced.