Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Mr. Savage asked a question on an amendment. In the past three days, we've had to postpone all that. The difficulty concerns the transfer of management to the provinces that so wish. What is urgent is that we prevent the program from deteriorating. So I would be ready to accept an amendment to that effect. The part that calls for the government to transfer management of the initiative to the provinces that so wish could be deleted. If that suits Mr. Savage and Ms. Savoie, we would agree to that.
Furthermore, I would like to note here a few elements that are not consistent with what has happened. We already revised this program barely a year ago. The committee made 14 recommendations to the government, which did not consider them, which disregarded them. Are we going to do the same work all over? What are we doing here, Mr. Chairman?
I would also remind the Conservatives that, in the budget tabled this week, the government announces that it is ready to transfer all matters pertaining to employment training to the provinces. That means that this is also consistent with this concern, but I'm dropping this part.
What the Conservatives are raising is intolerable. We don't agree that it's Wal-Mart, Rogers or other large companies. This program was poorly implemented in certain places. In our ridings, it was properly implemented. It is false to say that it is us who choose. It's the public servants in the regions who choose based on applications. When we have to arbitrate choices, we can intervene, but it's first of all the public servants who choose.
Our friends here said so. It isn't because one part doesn't work or that someone did his job poorly that the entire program has to be thrown out. Let's take the following example: it isn't because a senior minister in the present government deceived the House that the House budget will be cut by 50%. The situation here is the same.