Mr. Speaker, my question, which is for the Deputy Prime Minister, has to do with an everyday problem, since it concerns the tragic situation of unemployment.
The Minister of Human Resources Development was strongly criticized by a number of people representing social groups, during a discussion on the reform of social programs, in Toronto. Several participants accused the government of wanting to fight our country's economic problems on the back of the poor and the unemployed who need social programs. The Prime Minister was also criticized in New Brunswick on this issue.
Does the Deputy Prime Minister agree that, as one participant put it to the Minister of Human Resources Development, "the problem is unemployment, not unemployment insurance and not social security programs", adding that "the government tries to solve economic problems through social programs"? Does the Deputy Prime Minister share that view?