Mr. Speaker, during Literacy Action Day on Parliament Hill, I encountered some delegates storming out of the office of the Minister for la Francophonie and Official Languages.
The government's explanation for the cuts to these programs is simple: literacy programs are ineffective, since there are still people who are illiterate.
The Minister for la Francophonie and Official Languages and the Minister of Human Resources have to understand that by cutting the literacy programs, the illiteracy rate will only increase.
The Minister of Human Resources bragged about allocating $2.5 million to new projects in the adult learning, literacy and essential skills program. And yet, she is unable to justify the $17.7 million cut to that very program.
The Minister of Human Resources should have stayed a little longer at Literacy Action Day on Parliament Hill. She would have seen that the needs are still there and that we get results when we reward the good initiatives.