Human Resources Committee on May 12th, 2009

[Kelly Wilson]

Right. So develop some priorities and then figure out what you're going to fund next.

[Michael Savage, Liberal, Dartmouth—Cole Harbour, NS]

One of the things I see in my area--and I'm sure other MPs do too--is people coming into my office who have children now in their early twenties who have issues; maybe it is Down's syndrome, maybe it is CP or something else. They went to high school and were part of the team of kids who actually graduated. They were mainstreamed into high school. And they feel great. They go to the graduation. All the other kids love the fact that they've been able to help them graduate. It's good for them; it's good for the other kids. And then they fall off a cliff. The other kids go on to university, to community college, or to jobs. For these kids, there's nothing.

When you talk about spaces, in my own area of Halifax, you're talking about hundreds of kids for four, five, or six spaces. There's a program that has 20 spaces or so. So absolutely, we need to provide training for those people.

And their parents are going to bed every night wondering what happens when they leave this earth, with these kids. We don't seem to provide them with a living income.

So I certainly agree with you, Kelly. We have to provide more opportunities for kids like that, for adults like that to get training.

[Bernard Richard]

I'm a great supporter of the child tax benefit. I think it's great. But it underlines the importance of different levels of governments working together so that the benefits created at the federal level are not just a good opportunity for provincial governments to claw it back--because we've seen that as well, very often. At the end of the day, for the individual, there's not a huge benefit because some of it is being clawed back.

So having federal-provincial-territorial cooperation and an agreement on some of these programs is hugely important. In terms of extending it to people who live with handicaps, I think you're right, it's important. Unfortunately, I'm old enough to remember when kids with handicaps didn't even go to school. They were hidden in backrooms, in bedrooms of houses, because there certainly was no place for them. So I think we've made strides in that respect. They're now included, and it's become a fundamental principle of our society so that other kids know that they actually exist.

I think you're right. At some point they're well included, they're part of the gang, and then all of a sudden they fall off the cliff, as you say so well. There needs to be a transition into a different world, obviously, from school.

[The Chair, Conservative, Dean Allison]

Thank you very much.

We're going to go to Mr. Lobb. He'll be the last questioner of the morning session.

You have the floor.

[Ben Lobb, Conservative, Huron—Bruce, ON]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, guests, for coming here today.

As you can well imagine, we've met with numerous people who are professionals and experts such as you, and you can well imagine we've heard a consistent theme. Our most vulnerable have housing issues. We've also heard of working together with our non-profit groups at all levels, NGOs on the ground, consistent operating funds, health, mental health, addiction and education, persons with disabilities, early childhood education. Those are the themes I hear. I'm sure my colleagues do as well. However those are our most vulnerable, and as we are well aware, there are different groups and categories under the poverty umbrella.

I want to look at the glass being half full, if I may, and I want to direct my questions to Mr. Richard because he served with Premier McKenna. I'm sure one of your colleagues was Georges Corriveau, whom I know from NRC. I've had some business dealings with him.

I want to focus on one quote Mr. McKenna made, and I believe to some degree it is very accurate, “the best social program is employment”. I want to focus on what's happened in New Brunswick, the good news story in Moncton. I think Mr. Corriveau is known for bringing the Internet to New Brunswick. Maybe that's not quite fair, but definitely Moncton has transitioned into a knowledge-based economy to some degree, and that has taken the underemployed to gainful employment, it's taken the unemployed to underemployment--the natural progression we would like to see in society. As a former education minister, you would see some of this as well.

I wonder if you could comment on what has taken place in Moncton in the last 10 years, and specifically your time when we've made this great transition in New Brunswick and where we need to go. I know ACOA has been a great regional tool to continue to spur growth and trade growth. The HST has been great. So have tax incentives.

Explain to us how we got to where we are today and where we can go to take it to the next level.

[Bernard Richard]

Obviously, Mr. McKenna was a firm believer in creating jobs; some would say he was obsessed by that. The prime focus of his 10 years as premier was to create jobs and to use new technologies to take us out of the traditional industries.

I live in a small community of lobster fishermen. These are not really good times there right now. When I wake up in the morning in my village of Cap-Pelé, I see Jamaicans walk by my house to go to the fish plants, because it's not possible to find people in this Acadian village of Cap-Pelé to work in the fish plants. Many of them are working in call centres in Moncton.

Moncton, because of its bilingual nature, its access to a bilingual workforce, and despite our issues with illiteracy and all of that, I think has been able to transform itself. It's not true for every community in New Brunswick. Our unemployment rate is still way too high, but obviously the message of hope, as we found out from our cousins to the south, carries very strongly; it's the little train that can. It compels people to do things, so the business community in Moncton, the municipal leadership, and the provincial leadership through Mr. McKenna that was carried on through Mr. Lord and now through Premier Graham, has decided we can accomplish things. Just because in the end shops can't continue to survive in Moncton that we.... Now here we are, we've come full circle. A local businessman just got a $100 million contract to refurbish VIA railcars here in Moncton. It was announced last week.

I think a positive attitude, knowing that we can do things if we're obsessed by it, if we're really determined, but that we need to carry people with us.... That's why he said “the best social program is employment”.

What concerns me is when I look at the government in this race to the bottom, because New Brunswick is absolutely determined to have the lowest tax rates in Canada, but I'm absolutely certain that another province will want the lowest tax rate in Canada. If we don't maintain the balance we need to have and enough flexibility and resources to make.... We'll always have sick people. We'll always have handicapped people. We'll never abolish car accidents and we'll have people in wheelchairs. If we don't find a way to get the balance so that every member of society can feel included, then we won't succeed as a society. I'm convinced of that.

I think it's possible, with the right attitude and the right efforts, but we can never lose sight that we need to bring everybody with us.

[The Chair, Conservative, Dean Allison]

Thank you very much.

To our witnesses today, thank you very much for the work you're doing on the front lines and for taking time out of your busy schedules to come here today to talk to us about this important issue.

The meeting is adjourned.