Thank you very much, Madam Chair.
It's with a great deal of pleasure that I appear today to discuss our government's latest initiative to help Canadian workers and their families, Bill C-56, the Fairness for the Self-Employed Act.
Prime Minister Harper committed in 2008 to extend maternity and parental benefits to the self-employed. He said then:
Self-employed Canadians--and those who one day hope to be--shouldn't have to choose between starting a family and starting a business because of government policy. They should be able to pursue their dreams--both as entrepreneurs and as parents.
After additional consultations and listening directly to self-employed Canadians, we recognize the need to go even further and extend access to all EI special benefits.
Currently, self-employed Canadians have little or no income protection to cope with major life events such as the birth or adoption of a child, a parent or a child falling gravely ill, or even falling ill themselves. The Fairness For the Self-Employed Act will provide all EI special benefits--maternity, parental, sickness, and compassionate care--to self-employed Canadians on a voluntary basis. We've not just met our commitment; we've exceeded it.
Public research reinforces that the majority of self-employed Canadians want access to EI special benefits. In fact, just the other week, I received a petition from almost 1,000 Canadians asking for access to EI special benefits.
Self-employed Canadians asked for this bill, and for the first time in Canadian history, we are giving them just that. It's the fair and right thing to do and it's also good family policy.
Self-employed Canadians total 2.6 million in Canada and form 15% of the total labour market, and this number is growing. They're an integral part of our economy and are key contributors to innovation, investment, and job creation. They are playing a vital role in our continued productivity and in our economic recovery.
The self-employed are a very diverse group. They include farmers, tradespeople, those who run home businesses, lawyers, architects, and people who run our corner stores, to name just a few.
Increasingly, the self-employed are women. The number of enterprises led by women is expected to top one million next year.
Access to these benefits is especially important for them: one-third of self-employed women in Canada are of child-bearing age. This bill will mean that women will no longer have to delay or forgo having children altogether for fear it would be impossible to handle both responsibilities at the same time. It will mean that self-employed Canadians will no longer have to miss their babies' first words or first steps.
And self-employed Canadians will now have the option to take care of an elderly parent or a child who has fallen gravely ill. Everyone in this room knows the importance of spending the last few weeks with a loved one and being able to care for them.