I would like to just reinforce that there are specific things we can do. There is wide consensus that to have a uniform entrance rate of 360 hours across the country would let a lot more people in from the storm. Similarly, benefit levels are quite low at 55%. As the report that I'm releasing tomorrow will show, a large number of women cannot live on 55% of their earnings.
In the past we have had variable levels of benefits. We started off the UI program in 1942 with seven different categories of benefit receipts, from as low as 33% to as high as 75%, and with rates for dependants. We can fix the EI system to support families that have dependants so that they are not in poverty at 55% of whatever their previous rate of earnings was.
Similarly, Dennis has spoken of some of the measures in the last budget to support housing. The budget also announced that housing would be receiving $1.1 billion in the spreads between what the banks held as mortgages and what could be saved with the lower interest rate that the federal government offered.
The stimulus package that we put forward said we should use all of that money, $1.1 billion, and help cities across this country buy affordable housing stock. There is a glut of condos that are not moving. The prices are just going to fall for the condo developers, and they are in the hottest markets across the country, where just a few months ago there was a real hue and cry for affordable housing.
The Prime Minister himself said that there are deals to be had in this recession and, indeed, this is the time to purchase a stock of already built affordable housing with the money that we are getting in helping the banks.