Madam Speaker, last December, I asked a question about employment insurance. I asked it because the Liberal government wanted to cut EI premiums by 3¢ and, in the knowledge that, if it cut premiums, this would result in $280 million less in the EI fund. So, obviously, many Canadians are wondering why the member for Acadie—Bathurst does not want premiums to go down, when the government had a $3 billion surplus in 2004, for example, and in previous years, this surplus was around $7 billion or $8 billion per year.
I asked the question for the simple reason that I wanted to know why the government is still listening to the Conservatives, who are demanding premiums be cut. When changes are finally made, there will be a point when there will no longer be a surplus. In my opinion, it is wishful thinking to believe that the government will pay back the $46 billion it took from workers without their permission and, if it continues to cut EI premiums, that it will turn around and say it will be making changes.
My question to the government was clear. The minister gave the following answer:
Mr. Speaker, we listen to them both. Neither one is excluded. We are also awaiting the opinion of the Auditor General, who has said the system needs to be better balanced. We are taking action now because the economy is doing very well.
However, we know that the Prime Minister of Canada sent Liberals across Canada to conduct a study. We know that changes must be made. Why change EI premiums when they are crucial? First we must wait and see if there is enough money for the necessary changes and not put the cart before the horse.
So, I want to ask the parliamentary secretary to clarify this for us.