Evidence of meeting #4 for Human Resources, Skills and Social Development and the Status of Persons with Disabilities in the 40th Parliament, 2nd Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was budget.
A recording is available from Parliament.
12:20 p.m.
Conservative
Ben Lobb Conservative Huron—Bruce, ON
About 30 seconds, okay.
Just briefly, then, on the strategic training and transition fund, I wonder if you could elaborate briefly on that one.
12:20 p.m.
Associate Assistant Deputy Minister, Skills and Employment Branch, Department of Human Resources and Skills Development
I can speak to that, Mr. Chair.
The fund is intended to be a more flexible instrument than the current labour market agreement funding that flows to provinces, but like that existing instrument, it will be delivered by provinces and territories. It will benefit from the mechanism we have for the transfer, but there will be more flexible criteria. It won't be limited to either EI eligibility or non-EI eligibility. It will be flexible in that regard and it will be targeted to deal with the impacts of the downturn.
12:20 p.m.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Dean Allison
Thank you, Mr. Lobb.
We're now going to move back to the Liberals and Mr. Savage for five minutes, sir.
12:20 p.m.
Liberal
Michael Savage Liberal Dartmouth—Cole Harbour, NS
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
A last word on EI. When we talk about who's covered and who isn't covered and access, we keep hearing different numbers. The 82% the minister talked about and the language you use is those who contribute and qualify. The problem is the program is designed to exclude as many people as possible, it seems. A lot of people take some responsibility for that, but that is the issue. The bottom line is there are a lot of people in the country who cannot get benefits and who do in fact pay into the program. I think that is the single inequity that drives the problem with the unemployed in Canada right now: they have paid into it and they can't draw benefits. The program is designed to exclude them, and I think we have to change that.
I'd like to ask you, one of my favourite projects that the government has funded in the last number of years is the Canada summer jobs program. The budget indicates there's an extra $10 million a year for two years. Is that correct? How many jobs will that create?
12:25 p.m.
Associate Assistant Deputy Minister, Skills and Employment Branch, Department of Human Resources and Skills Development
I do have that number. I can report that in 2008 there were 20,000 organizations that were supported, creating 36,000 summer jobs. So I would presume it would be proportional to that level of investment.
12:25 p.m.
Liberal
12:25 p.m.
Associate Assistant Deputy Minister, Skills and Employment Branch, Department of Human Resources and Skills Development
I don't have the exact number, but we could easily get that for you based on the.... It would be the same cost per intervention that we'd be anticipating, so it would be the same proportional impact of the dollars.
12:25 p.m.
Liberal
Michael Savage Liberal Dartmouth—Cole Harbour, NS
I know that some organizations, I think CFS is one of them, had indicated that we should double that program. For less than $100 million--I think the budget was $97.5 million--we could have created somewhere probably in the range of 40,000 jobs that would have provided support for students who are going to find it increasingly difficult to find work. It also would have helped--and this often gets ignored--the not-for-profit organizations. In my riding, and I think in the ridings of most of the members of this committee, those jobs do go to the not-for-profit organizations, to child care, to people who help seniors, who help people with disability and youth soccer and all those sorts of things.
I offer this free of charge to the government: double the program and I will stand up in the House of Commons and I will very briefly commend the government for doing that. I think it's an outstanding program.
I want to ask about the Canadian Council on Learning. On Tuesday the minister indicated that their funding would be extended for another year. My understanding was it was going to run out at the end of March. Our chair asked the question. Is that the fact, that they have another year of funding that will take them to 2010?
12:25 p.m.
Associate Assistant Deputy Minister, Skills and Employment Branch, Department of Human Resources and Skills Development
David, are you prepared to...?
February 12th, 2009 / 12:25 p.m.
David MacDonald Assistant Deputy Minister, Learning Branch, Human Resources and Skills Development Canada
That's correct.
12:25 p.m.
Liberal
Michael Savage Liberal Dartmouth—Cole Harbour, NS
Okay, then it is not just that they are using the money they were given before for an extra year, but they have an extra year of funding.
12:25 p.m.
Assistant Deputy Minister, Learning Branch, Human Resources and Skills Development Canada
My understanding is their original funding was reprofiled to extend into 2010.
12:25 p.m.
Liberal
Michael Savage Liberal Dartmouth—Cole Harbour, NS
Reprofiled under certain governments means different things. Does that mean stretched or does that mean added?
12:25 p.m.
Assistant Deputy Minister, Learning Branch, Human Resources and Skills Development Canada
It means there was no increase in the original funding they received.
12:25 p.m.
Liberal
12:25 p.m.
Assistant Deputy Minister, Learning Branch, Human Resources and Skills Development Canada
The funding has been reprofiled to 2010, but the funding they received originally is the funding they will be using--
12:25 p.m.
Liberal
Michael Savage Liberal Dartmouth—Cole Harbour, NS
Okay. If I were reprofiled as a human being, would I live longer or would I just die easier? That's what I'm trying to get at here.
The same amount of funding that went into it when it was started--has that been added to in order to give it an extra year, or have they just been asked to stretch what they have for an extra year?
12:25 p.m.
Assistant Deputy Minister, Learning Branch, Human Resources and Skills Development Canada
I'm not a geneticist, but they have been asked to stretch for one more year.
12:25 p.m.
Liberal
Michael Savage Liberal Dartmouth—Cole Harbour, NS
Okay. Reprofiled--good; that's a nice one.
We often hear the minister speak about 60,000 child care spaces being funded under their government. Can you explain that number to me? Is that perhaps a reprofile as well?
12:25 p.m.
Associate Assistant Deputy Minister, Skills and Employment Branch, Department of Human Resources and Skills Development
I'm going to have to call in another of my colleagues, Frank Fedyk, the associate assistant deputy minister for the strategic policy and research branch.
Could Frank come to the table?
12:25 p.m.
Liberal
Michael Savage Liberal Dartmouth—Cole Harbour, NS
I remember Mr. MacDonald from the briefing now. You're very good. I enjoyed the briefing we had with you, I recall now, with a sense of humour.
12:25 p.m.
Frank Fedyk Associate Assistant Deputy Minister, Strategic Policy and Research, Department of Human Resources and Social Development
Budget 2007 provided additional funding to the provinces and territories to support the creation of child care spaces, so that funding has been made available. Since that time the provinces have made announcements that amount to over 60,000 spaces being created. British Columbia has 2,200, Alberta 20,314, Saskatchewan 1,550, Manitoba 9,000, Ontario 7,266, Quebec--