On the accreditation issue as well, we think we have to do something, because it's frankly a bit of a mess currently. Part of the issue is, again, federal-provincial jurisdiction issues. One way to break the logjam, I would propose, would be to identify five, six, ten crisis industries, crisis sectors, where the skills shortage is frightening. If we could start there, with somehow putting in place a national, coordinated, streamlined accreditation system, it could go a long way to perhaps breaking the logjam in general.
I think you would get agreement at the provincial level. You'd get agreement from the trade unions, most likely. You'd get agreements from industry, obviously. We have a real crisis in some areas, and I think Mr. Murphy could probably name five off the top of his head. He already talked about the trucking industry. We have to do something.
We've just finished some work, for example...what we feel will be the shortage of warm bodies, not just skilled labour in Alberta. In the year 2025 we're looking at over 330,000 workers short in terms of the demand for labour we're anticipating. That translates into roughly three million workers short at the national level. The word “crisis” comes to mind. If you think it's bad in Alberta now, it's just the tip of the iceberg.
So we need to get moving--now.
