Madam Chair, I'd like to thank the member for that question and his comments.
I was an intern in 2008-09. I think there are two aspects to the problem of how troubling it is to have young people referred to as gifts. One is that when you're a young person working on the Hill—I think it has improved since 2008-09—there is innuendo and there are comments. When you're a young woman, there are comments around being a young person on the Hill. Fortunately, with the parliamentary internship program, there are agencies; there are options.
The interns choose the MPs. They interview the MPs and they choose who they want to work with. There's an understanding that should the MP not behave appropriately, they will not be chosen by another intern. Fortunately, that doesn't happen. There was a connotation around “intern”, especially in 2008-09, that was particularly strong.
I also think it's not accurate or appropriate to refer to somebody as a gift to an MP. It's an exchange, a relationship between the intern and the member of Parliament and their staff. Often I find that the MPs say, “Oh, I learned all about this other region of the country because I had a chance to work with them. I'm an Alberta MP, and I got to work with somebody from Nova Scotia. Now I know a lot about Nova Scotia and I visited Nova Scotia.”
I don't think it's accurate or appropriate, and it's misleading and troubling for people who are trying to gain this educational experience.
Thank you.