Mr. Speaker, the hon. minister is talking about a booming economy and how that is helping all of us. The reality is that there is a huge wage gap that has been created in this country between the have and the have-nots because wages have not increased at the same rate as the economy has grown.
In fact, according to the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, 49% of Canadians say that they are one or two missed paycheques away from financial disaster.
One of the things that again the survey shows is that 86% of Canadians would like to see the growing prosperity gap being addressed. One of the things that they want to see addressed, and that is about 80% or 85% of Canadians, is affordable quality child care. It is one of the most important things in addition to affordable housing and of course education and raising the minimum wage. Child care is one of the major programs that affects women in particular in order to participate in the labour force.
Can the minister tell us why his government cancelled the agreement in this country on child care? Why to this date do we still have no national child care program? There have been practically no child care spaces created by the government to date.