Can you meet the minister?
Evidence of meeting #8 for Status of Women in the 39th Parliament, 2nd Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was things.
A recording is available from Parliament.
Evidence of meeting #8 for Status of Women in the 39th Parliament, 2nd Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was things.
A recording is available from Parliament.
5:15 p.m.
Director of Research, Community Social Planning Council of Toronto
Of course, if you want to organize a meeting.
5:15 p.m.
Conservative
5:15 p.m.
Bloc
5:15 p.m.
Conservative
The Vice-Chair Conservative Patricia Davidson
We will move to Mrs. Mathyssen, for three minutes, please.
5:15 p.m.
NDP
Irene Mathyssen NDP London—Fanshawe, ON
Thank you, Madam Chair.
Earlier in the presentations we heard a reference to the $190 billion that has been taken from the federal government's capacity to fund and to invest in communities. That deficit or that amount of money lost from our ability to fund is very troubling to me.
What do you see in the next few years as a consequence of that?
5:15 p.m.
Director of Research, Community Social Planning Council of Toronto
We're going to be a lot slower in moving on the agenda that we've talked about, because that's partly the process of hearing that the cupboard is bare.
It looks like the United States will be entering a recession in 2008. Given the degree of integration with our economy, we can expect some kind of slowdown. Knowing that you've raided $191 billion in surplus over the next few years means that you can say legitimately, “The cupboard is bare; we can't help you.” But women have waited in good times and bad for something to be done.
It is disheartening. It is hugely disheartening. That said, it's not like we have no money to do things. We still have some money. As a society, we can actually say that we want to pay for these things, but that's where in fact politicians and civil society intersect. It is totally political what we do. It's not for lack of money. We have $1 trillion more a year now than we did 25 years ago.
Somehow we're losing access to health care and education and all the rest of it. We're struggling to maintain what we already have. It's not about the money; it's about us deciding that we want to spend the money we make on the type of society we want, and I'm very hopeful that we are actually entering a new political period where we talk about these things reasonably, that we see that it is the legacy of my generation, the boomer generation, stripping the assets of public infrastructure and the supports that our own children are not going to enjoy, and we're not even sure how they're going to be earning a living in the next 20 years. I'm very hopeful that we will stop sleepwalking and that we will actually talk about how we can share better the prosperity that we have in spades in this country compared to most countries.
So the $191 billion is gone. As Dr. Phil says, you can't take back stupid. We lost it, unless some government wants to be elected and say in fact that we don't need to spend that. But that takes political courage, and maybe that's what we're about to engage in, an era of political courage so we pay for the country that we want to live in.
5:20 p.m.
Conservative
The Vice-Chair Conservative Patricia Davidson
You have 15 seconds left, if you want to add anything.
5:20 p.m.
United Nations Platform for Action Committee Manitoba
I would just add that I would encourage you, as members of Parliament, to ask the additional question when government priorities come before you, when government initiatives come before you. Consistent with Canada's commitments under the Beijing Platform for Action, you should ask and demand that you be provided with the information you need to understand if these initiatives are going to disproportionately benefit or harm gender equality among your constituents. You're there to represent them all.
Thank you.
5:20 p.m.
Conservative
The Vice-Chair Conservative Patricia Davidson
Thank you very much.
I thank the members of the committee, and I thank very much the people who have come and presented today.
I'm sorry that we lost our connection with Australia before we got to thank the professor, but we will make sure that happens.
Oh, I'm sorry, do you have a question?
5:20 p.m.
Bloc
Johanne Deschamps Bloc Laurentides—Labelle, QC
Yes. Was it Ms. Yalnizyan who submitted an untranslated document to us?
5:20 p.m.
Conservative
The Vice-Chair Conservative Patricia Davidson
Yes. It's being translated and will be circulated to everyone on the committee.
Did you have a question, Ms. Minna?
Okay.
Again, thank you very much.
The meeting is adjourned.