Mr. Speaker, in their brief yesterday to the human resources development committee, the Fédération des femmes du Québec stated that fewer and fewer women will be eligible for maternity benefits because of the unemployment insurance reform. The Liberal MPs on the committee were, moreover, unable to disprove the federation's statement.
Does the Minister of Human Resources Development realize that, by setting a minimum number of hours worked ranging from 420 to 700 hours, he will be preventing a considerable number of women from drawing maternity benefits?