Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the member for Madawaska—Restigouche for returning to his question from the beginning of May.
A great deal has happened in the interim. Thousands upon thousands of Canadian students have been given quality work experiences this summer. Importantly, students who are getting grants this year will be getting positions that are higher quality, positions for more pay and for a longer duration than under the old Liberal program.
A great deal more has happened since the member first asked his question. Now the public is well aware of the Liberals' scaremongering and misinformation about the cost of the program which they said was cut by $55 million.
New Brunswickers now know that last year their province received $3.7 million for not for profit opportunities. This year, New Brunswick also received $3.7 million.
Across Canada, not for profit positions were funded to the tune of $77.6 million. This year it will receive $77.6 million.
The member should know by now that a great deal has happened in his region since he first asked the question. He should know that the new program is targeted to areas of high unemployment which benefited his region.
Perhaps the member will choose the rest of his words carefully. While the situation is still fluid at this stage, all indications point to the Madawaska-Restigouche region benefiting more from the new Conservative program in the first round than it ever did under his Liberals.
His constituents should certainly be happy that their new government is getting things done for them. I invite them to pay close attention to his remarks here and now, and measure them against results when all is final.
But even more has happened since the member first asked his question. As we all know, some organizations came forward to express concerns when they were not funded in the first round. Their new government took action.
The minister listened to community leaders and the concerns of the members of Parliament. He asked his department to look into why good organizations did not receive funding this year. He did ask them to accelerate the second round of funding. I am sure most Canadians would be hard pressed to picture the old Liberal government listening and responding to concerns.
Now, officials in the department have worked tirelessly to contact organizations and review their status. Many organizations are lauding the minister and this government for listening and responding so quickly. What has not changed since the member asked his question is this government's commitment to the principles of the new Canada summer jobs program.
The new program is one that focuses on the students. We appreciate the concerns that have been raised. We appreciate the good work of these great organizations. But this program of the youth employment strategy.
We are proud that the new program brings the focus back to students. We are proud to have created better jobs for a longer duration and more pay. We are proud to emphasize quality work experiences in fields that help students and their career aspirations, and so are Canadians.