Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman.
I was very interested in the overview of the past 10 years that was presented. I think, however, that we have to look back to the economic crisis, which was not mentioned, and to the steps we took to create thousands of jobs in Canada.
In 2014, after we had recovered from the crisis, our first priority was to preserve Canadians' jobs.
I am glad you are here, Mr. Ferguson. You are the watchdog for taxpayers, and I say that with respect. This afternoon, you are saying that the measures the Conservative government instituted in 2014 were effective, that we reduced the number of foreign workers, and that the work continues. That is good news to be sure. In other words, we were successful in terms of the economy, and remarkably so. I say this without wanting to offend my colleagues opposite. We did this without increasing taxes on the middle class, without hitting corporate taxes, and while bringing down the deficit. That is not the purpose of the presentation today, however.
What I am really interested in this afternoon is continuity. This committee produced an excellent report including recommendations that were taken into consideration by the government. They are interesting measures. It will also be interesting to see whether they will be effective and whether the action plan will work.
You are raising problems today that you mentioned in 2014. Mr. Boulerice also mentioned them. First, were efforts made to give recruitment priority to Canadians before resorting to foreign workers? Next, do we have performance indicators showing the effects of the program on the labour market and on wages? You said that it had not been demonstrated that the program was used as a last resort.
I will reiterate the question from my colleague, Ms. Wong: what are the recommendations going forward? As to the Liberal action plan, you already said that they have missed some deadlines. What do you consider the most important elements that our committee should focus on to help the government ensure the program is effective?