One of the programs we believe to be important, and which will probably end up seeing its budget cut back, is the Summer Career Placement program. I'd like to briefly remind Committee members of the three objectives of this program: to help students prepare their entry into the world of work, to create additional jobs that would not be created otherwise, and the third objective — in my opinion, the most important one — is to provide students with income with which to pursue their post-secondary studies.
Having myself benefited from this program, I can assure you that it does allow young people to gain work experience in their specific field of study. It provides an initial work experience in anticipation of a professional career. It's worth repeating some of the statistics: 51.6% of job offers are from non-profit organizations; 31% come from the private sector; and 41.2% of the young people who take part in the program are between 15 and 19 years of age.
In our opinion, cutting the budget of this program is tantamount to cutting future prospects for young people. This program has its place and has proven itself. I do not understand why there is a move to cut back its funding when the money is available. The government claims that these are purely administrative cuts that will allow for greater efficiency, as François said. But we do not believe that is the real purpose. Rather, we believe the government wants to cut the budget of a program that has proven itself and could mean a better future for young people in Canada.
Thank you.