Mr. Speaker, on April 11, the Association coopérative d'économie familiale de Bois-Franc announced the winners of its 13th Déméritas consumer price awards.
The garbage can award went to the federal government for appropriation of the surplus in the employment insurance fund to pay the deficit.
As of March 31, 1999, the surplus was $7 billion. Obviously, the federal government is very interested in this surplus, an interest that is especially upsetting because it does not contribute at all to this fund, since it is funded by the contributions of workers and employers.
The ACEF supports the statement by the Coalition régionale sur l'assurance-emploi, which says, and I quote “that the employment insurance fund is a unique social safety net”.
Workers will never support the federal government's immoral approach in pillaging the surpluses in the employment insurance fund. Canadians and Quebecers will never condone this behaviour.