Thank you, Mr. Chair.
This isn't getting any better. Mr. Cirtwill is saying it's not that they are lazy, but those who are the least well-off take advantage of the system. That is the take-home message. And that message is getting worse. Someone said that statistics are weak by nature and that, if need be, they can be twisted to say anything you want them to say. And that is kind of what our colleague Mr. Lake did earlier. The premise of what he said was that the employment situation had improved because of steps to tighten employment insurance eligibility criteria and that, by extension, this had also had a positive impact in terms of poverty levels. Did I understand you correctly?
The United Nations' social measures committee observed the situation in different countries and indicated that when you compare statistics on poverty in Canada from 1990 and today, clearly the situation hasn't improved. There are not more poor people, but those who are poor are poorer than they used to be. It has been observed recently that there are an increasing number of poor people who have a job. Even though they work, they use food banks. The highest use of food banks among workers is in Alberta. It is 17% in Alberta, whereas the national average is 14%, with 13% in Quebec. So when you make those kinds of comparisons, you always have to work from the same points of reference.
Mr. Lake asked a question. It's always very interesting to listen to what others have to say because it helps us understand what might motivate their decisions, especially when those people are in power. And these people aren't listening. They're asking the unions and groups representing the unemployed what studies they're doing and what recommendations they have to improve the employment situation. 150,000 people have lost their jobs over the past five years in the manufacturing sector in Quebec alone. From what I understand, the unions and groups representing the unemployed have solutions. These solutions have even been brought before the House of Commons, but you have refused to entertain them. Why aren't you listening? You criticize them for not bringing forward solutions or recommendations. But clearly, you're not listening if you're playing with your BlackBerry.
It's the same situation in the forestry industry. There are 25,000 people who lost their jobs in the forestry sector. And what was the Conservatives' answer to this? They didn't listen. There was nothing for this industry in the budget. And that's also what we are trying to get at. When you talk about the unemployed, you're talking about people who have not got the help they logically needed from their government, which has meant they have lost their jobs. It is not just a coincidence that they lost their jobs. The 25,000 forestry workers want to work. They have demonstrated, and last week, about a hundred of them went to Mr. Blackburn's office. These people want to work. But they're not being given any work, and all they're being told to do is go and work in Alberta, uproot themselves, and live in poverty in Alberta and have to use food banks.
I want to hear what our friends have to say on this matter. Am I mistaken when I say that you have made recommendations despite the fact that they say you've done nothing in this regard?