Madam Speaker, it is a great honour to rise today not only to address the fairness for military families act, but also to speak a little about its origins in which I am honoured to have had a small part.
Some time ago I was knocking on doors in the southwest Ottawa village of Osgoode. On a doorstep there, I met a soldier, Major Duquette. He told me his personal story, having served Canada in the Middle East, in the Golan Heights. He left five days after the birth of his son, Jacob. His story illustrates the immense sacrifice and courage that families in the military make all the time. His wife later said that one of the things that got them through that year while he was serving Canada abroad was the fact that he would take parental leave under employment insurance when he returned to make up some of the lost time with the newborn he was missing out on as a result of his service to Canada overseas.
When he returned after serving nobly in theatre, he applied for his employment insurance. He would have been surprised not to receive it because after all, like all members of the armed forces, he paid premiums into the employment insurance system, just like everyone else. He was shocked to learn, however, that his time for receiving those benefits had expired during the period he was serving all of us overseas. He looked in the law and found that there was no exemption to capture the fact that soldiers may be away during the time that follows the birth of their children. There was an exception, as he learned, for criminals to put off their benefits until their prison sentences are complete, an irony that I felt was untenable. I committed to him that day that I would bring this problem to the Prime Minister and that we together would get it solved.
That is why I was very proud that our Minister of Human Resources tabled in the House of Commons a government bill designed to fix that inequity. I would like to congratulate all members in the House of Commons who have committed to support that very important remedy. This is a non-partisan issue. It is about our families. It is about our soldiers. It is about giving them back the benefits for which they have paid, which I think all members in the House would agree is the very least that we can do.
Madam Speaker, I know that you share the same passion for our soldiers and I hope that all members of all parties will share it as well and we can unify in this place and show Canadians that we really can work together in the best interests of this country in order to bring fairness to our employment insurance system. Fairness is what this bill is all about; in fact, fairness is in its name.
To conclude the first part of my speech today, I will thank Major Duquette for having brought this issue to the attention of Canada's Parliament so that we could act on behalf of all soldiers who find themselves in similar circumstances.