Looking at a couple of different motions we have on the page together around seniors, there's a clear consensus within the committee to act on seniors, but I, too, will be supporting the decision we made to study EI. That was put forward by Madame Chabot in good faith, and there's important work to be done there, especially as we look at its application to things like basic income and other elements. The EI study is important, and it's important to look at what changes were made and how we move forward on that.
At the same time, MP Falk has brought forward an important concern. When you take a look at the prior motions that were passed on it and try to package them together, if we were to change the motion to be a bit more specific and to have it follow on the EI study, I think we could get both done in a timely fashion.
The motion I propose, which pulls together the different motions, would be that the committee study the impact of federal programs and transfers to other orders of government and individuals related to seniors and older Canadians, and how they have been impacted and/or augmented due to COVID. The study will also examine how other federal programs not directly related to seniors may be reformed to better serve Canadians as they age.
This ties in the point that I think Mr. Vis made around seniors' housing. It's not an explicitly defined program within the national housing strategy, but we fund seniors' housing. We don't fund long-term care, and we might want to look at why that is and what the provincial objections to that are. However, I think this captures all the seniors' issues and gives us a wide field that incorporates the other members' ideas.
As I said, MP Falk brought a motion forward, and I think the consensus of the committee is to support it, but it needs to be a bit broader to capture some of the additional points that were raised by other MPs in the conversation. That's the motion I put in its place to get the study done, if it's met with committee approval.