Mr. Speaker, since 1993 Canadians have been paying more in taxes and getting less back in services. The employment insurance program is a good example.
Despite the claims that the Liberals have been cutting taxes, payroll taxes have gone up steadily since 1993. The surplus in the EI program is still running about $6 billion per year with a total surplus of about $19 billion. That means that the government has taken $19 billion more from the workers and the employers than it gave back in benefits.
This situation is absolutely intolerable. In Newfoundland and Labrador the EI changes have directly contributed to our massive out-migration. Over 30,000 individuals in the last three years have left Newfoundland. Throughout St. John's West from Bay Bulls to Placentia our rural communities are being devastated.
This year in Newfoundland with an unemployment rate of 18% many individuals cannot receive EI benefits, even though Newfoundlanders this year paid $32 million in premiums more than they received in benefits. It is time to use the EI fund for the benefit of those who need it most, the unemployed.