Evidence of meeting #20 for Human Resources, Skills and Social Development and the Status of Persons with Disabilities in the 43rd Parliament, 2nd Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was workers.
A recording is available from Parliament.
Conservative
Brad Vis Conservative Mission—Matsqui—Fraser Canyon, BC
Thank you.
I wonder if the witnesses would agree with the following statement: The employment insurance program is an important source of support for Canadian workers, providing temporary income to benefit people who have lost their job or have been absent from work for an extended period of time.
Please just give me a yes-or-no answer.
President, Canadian Labour Congress
I can't say yes and I can't say no, because you're going to trap me into any answer I make, so I refuse to answer your question.
Conservative
Brad Vis Conservative Mission—Matsqui—Fraser Canyon, BC
Well, Mr. Yussuff, did you agree with the 2018 changes to expand the EI parental sharing benefit or to put that into place?
Conservative
Brad Vis Conservative Mission—Matsqui—Fraser Canyon, BC
Do you know what document those changes were a part of?
President, Canadian Labour Congress
I do not offhand. My colleague Chris Roberts might remember.
Do you, Chris?
Conservative
Brad Vis Conservative Mission—Matsqui—Fraser Canyon, BC
I can tell you. It was the 2018 budget. Don't you think it's a little disingenuous for Wayne Long and Kate Young to say that we need this legislation passed when the government could, in fact, have tabled a budget last year and made changes to the employment insurance system?
President, Canadian Labour Congress
Well, listen. Far be it from me to do a retrospective. If I knew I was going to live this long, I probably would have lived my life much healthier, so I don't know if that tells you anything.
The reality is we're in a crisis, and in a crisis, I think what we as Canadians have to do is figure out how we can work better together to ensure we're actually addressing the needs of the people who are in a crisis right now, and those are workers, millions of them, who have lost their jobs. We want to figure out how to get them back to work, and the EI benefits are going to be equally important in getting them back to work.
Conservative
Brad Vis Conservative Mission—Matsqui—Fraser Canyon, BC
I agree, and that's why I think we need a federal budget today.
Mostafa Askari, Sahir Khan and Kevin Page at the Institute of Fiscal Studies and Democracy recently opined in a letter in the Globe and Mail about the need for transparency and for a plan to get Canadians back to work, which would be included in the budget.
Do you think it would be appropriate for our next budget to have provisions that expanded our current employment insurance system to address the needs of Canadians who are at risk of losing their jobs?
President, Canadian Labour Congress
I think the budget could do many things in addition to all of what you have suggested. Yes, I'm hoping that when the budget comes out, it will include a lot of things that the government has noted that it needs to address with regard to ensuring that the weaknesses that we have seen in this pandemic, the cracks that we have seen in our social system, are going to be addressed in a major way that actually gives Canadians confidence that we have heard them and that we're addressing those concerns.
Conservative
Brad Vis Conservative Mission—Matsqui—Fraser Canyon, BC
Thank you, Mr. Yussuff. That was very helpful.
I'm going to use the rest of my time to call out the hypocrisy that I heard in this committee.
Wayne Long and Kate Young both voted for the 2018 budget, which included substantive changes to the EI system. The longer this government goes without bringing forward a budget, the longer it will take to complete a fiscal plan to help chart a new course for our country to secure the future for Canadian workers and those who need our support. The comments earlier today—and this is not directed at the witnesses; I'm just using my time—are disingenuous and, frankly, inappropriate, given that they both knew and voted on a budget that included massive changes to our employment insurance system. For the Liberal members to even insinuate that the Conservatives are holding up benefits to Canadians.... I turn it back on them, that they are holding back our country and our economy.
Thank you very—
Conservative
Brad Vis Conservative Mission—Matsqui—Fraser Canyon, BC
The point of order is the comment you made earlier, Mr. Long. I'm not doing anything inappropriate.
Liberal
Liberal
Wayne Long Liberal Saint John—Rothesay, NB
I think my colleague is basically grandstanding here. I think he's off topic, and I question the relevancy.
Conservative
Brad Vis Conservative Mission—Matsqui—Fraser Canyon, BC
The relevancy, Mr. Chair, is that budgets can include changes to employment insurance benefits, so for the government members of the committee to insinuate that our party is holding up the legislative process—
Conservative
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Sean Casey
In terms of ruling on the point of order, it's Mr. Vis's time, and he can use his time as he sees fit.
Anyway, I think everyone has retreated to their corners. We can move on.
Mr. Vaughan, you have five minutes, please.