Thank you, Madam Chair.
Thank you, Minister, for coming to meet with us today.
I would very much like to follow up on your last statement about being non-partisan and trying to be as objective as we can on these issues. At the end of the day, we're all here to serve the same thing. However, I do have to deal with the facts.
The government has eliminated the equality provisions of Status of Women Canada. The government has cut $5 million, 40% of the budget. The government has shut down offices. The government has changed the provisions so that advocacy is no longer funded, advocacy that goes to all of the things the minister mentioned a few minutes ago. All of those issues need research and advocacy. That's how they were brought to the fore in the first place by women's organizations and by your counterparts at the provincial level.
Minister, at this point I need to...since during question period you stated that the discussions today in Toronto will not deal at all with the issue of cuts. In La Presse today, the minister for the status of women in Quebec pretty much talks about only that:
Provincial status of women ministers are meeting in Toronto on Thursday to devise a common strategy to convince federal Minister Bev Oda to reconsider the decision to slash federal funding for women's programs.
That is one part.
She goes on to say:
She further stated: “The message that we're hoping to convey to Minister Oda is how important these activities are to women's groups and to the role women play in Canada”.
However, Ms. Théberge is confident that she and her colleagues can exert enough pressure to bring about a change of heart in Ottawa.
That is only one statement today, Madam Minister.
Prior to the meeting, there were other comments in previous media. From January 11, there are quotes from Madam Pupatello from Ontario. She states very clearly that at previous meetings, the minister did not stay long enough for them to have a proper meeting. Yes, they were having a meeting to discuss programs much beyond the cuts; however, a federal-provincial-territorial meeting requires the federal government to be present, and you obviously were not.
I'll quote from the previous article, again, just what the minister said:
It's hard to have an FPT (federal-provincial-territorial meeting) with no F. That sort of sums it up....It's just very frustrating because you feel like you're at the altar and the bride didn't show.
These are comments straight from the ministers at the provincial level, Madam Minister.
I'm sorry I have to bring this up again. However, given the fact that we are here to talk about equality for women, and that a lot of these things are federal-provincial partnerships, I would ask you, Minister, since then, in your conversations with provincial and territorial counterparts, have you reviewed the government's position on the elimination of the equality provisions, on the cuts, and on the closing of offices? Have you reconsidered and decided, hopefully, that in fact advocacy groups should be funded and that the equality provisions of the Status of Women are to be reinstated? Otherwise, the raison d'être of the department is in essence no longer in existence.