I'm very pleased that a lot has been mentioned about training and apprenticeship.
Over the last number of years, northern Ontario chiefs have told me they don't sign contracts for labour that lasts a year or more during a construction phase, meaning the long-term jobs and particularly the ones with mobility. When they're talking about trades and apprenticeships, they are talking about first nations people having the opportunity to get tickets, so that if they are electricians or plumbers, they are a mobile workforce and can move. They would still have a home community, but they would work throughout northern Ontario and perhaps all of Canada.
The mining association has raised a concern about the ending of the aboriginal skills employment partnership program. Since 2003 more than 18,000 aboriginal people have been trained under that program. The funding is running out this year, and the government has not renewed support for this program. What will the impact be on you and your organization in terms of training?