Mr. Speaker, students and employers alike are concerned about the changes brought in by the minority Conservative government to the student summer employment program.
Young people in my riding of Humber—St. Barbe—Baie Verte and across the entire country are very upset that $65 million has been cut from the program. They are also very upset that the Conservatives are prioritizing areas of high crime over areas such as my Newfoundland and Labrador riding of Humber—St. Barbe—Baie Verte where crime is appropriately low.
Employers are deservedly upset that any company with 50 employees or more need not apply.
Some of the best experiences that young people from my riding have come to enjoy have come from working with community weekly newspapers as junior reporters and publishing assistants over the summer months. Because these small community newspapers are part of a larger chain, they will not be able to provide this experience in the future.
This is just wrong. The federal Conservative government and the minister should fix it and fix it now.