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.