Mr. Speaker, I have another petition to present today that deals with an issue of great importance to Canadians: our future economic stability.
Millions of Canadians who work directly and indirectly with the manufacturing sector are troubled by the headlines that talk of the upcoming layoffs and future plant closures. Already, 250,000 hard-working Canadians in the manufacturing sector have lost their jobs in the past few months, and there is great fear that more cuts are on the way. The loss of these jobs will definitely impact on the future economic prosperity of Canada and it is clear that urgent action is needed.
I ask my fellow members to join with me and the petitioners and work in consultation with labour and business leaders across the country to develop a plan to better protect Canada's manufacturing sector and secure our future economic prosperity.