Mr. Chair, the member opposite seems to promote an allegation that is without a factual basis, which is that the jobs that are being created are not good jobs.
He should look at the article in The Globe and Mail of February this year written by Derek DeCloet, which states:
Those were not McJobs, either: 143,000 of them were in finance or real estate; 323,000 in education or health care; 228,000 in construction; 58,000 in natural resources. ...[these jobs] shouldn't be derided; they're the reason Canada is a wealthier country today than it has ever been.
If we add up those numbers, it is 752,000 net new jobs over that period of time.
In response to the previous question from the hon. member, I have the statistic that he was seeking, although it is not the exact period of time. From November 2002 to March 2008, the overall growth in all industries was over 1.6 million jobs, but in manufacturing the number was of course negative 362,900.
It is obvious, I think, to most people, looking at the Canadian economy, and in fact the economy in most western industrialized countries, that we are going through a period of adjustment in some industries. There is an adjustment in forestry and in manufacturing certainly.