Mr. Speaker, I wish to thank my Liberal colleague for his question. This new employment insurance reform as proposed by the Minister of Human Resources Development will help us increase productivity in Quebec and across Canada.
There are several very interesting points in this reform; there are the responsibilities we will give to all job seekers. There will be wage subsidies and earnings supplements. I already mentioned self-employment assistance. There will also be partnerships with the provinces, municipalities, and the companies themselves to put people back to work.
I think that this is the most important. There will also be social incentives. Basing the reform on the number of hours of work and on earnings will greatly benefit the Canadian economy. There are inequities in the existing Unemployment Insurance Act in that some people can qualify for UI after working 15 hours a week for 12 weeks, while others who work 14 hours a week in part time jobs, perhaps for several years, have no chance of receiving UI benefits.
This bill will eliminate some inequities. In the case of lower income people, namely those working part time, some 500,000 of them will now be eligible for UI benefits should they need them-although I hope they will keep their jobs for as long as possible.