Mr. Speaker, I thank my riding neighbour for his speech. He and I represent ridings where seasonal work is a reality.
According to the IMF, Canada's household debt is one of the highest in the world right now. Those most often affected are low-income earners, our seasonal workers, the very people who are indispensable in economic sectors that serve as pillars of our regions, such as the fishing industry.
I recently met Lise Lapierre of E. Gagnon & Fils, in Sainte-Thérèse-de-Gaspé. She spends long hours pushing carts full of crabs and lobsters. In spite of everything, she is dealing with the EI spring gap. This year, it lasted from March through mid-April.
Does my colleague not think that, to address the economic situation, this government needs to wake up and quickly reform employment insurance to put an end to the spring gap for seasonal workers?