Mr. Speaker, I have to smile when I see someone who wants to put the employment problem right back on every member's doorstep. I find that amazing. I do not see why a party would want to get elected and have the power and the instruments it needs to run the economy, if it means making members responsible for job creation.
However, I will give you my thoughts on small businesses, and I can tell you the concept was not discovered by the newly-elected Liberal government. It has been common knowledge for years. Anyone who is concerned about employment issues knows where the jobs are. There are jobs in the public sector, which are being cut because it is felt the public sector is costing too much, which means fewer jobs and less money in circulation. However, one soon realizes that jobs are created by the business sector. At one time I was working for a union and I said, at great personal cost to myself, that unionized workers should be concerned about productivity.
Yes, small businesses do create jobs. But the federal government, which runs Employment and Immigration Canada and which has, and this is just an example, I am hitting the ball back in your court, Self-Employment Assistance-