House of Commons photoWon her last election, in 2006, with 46% of the vote.
Employment Insurance March 8th, 2005
It was a very good convention. All the resolutions we considered had been tabled. Hon. members may not be familiar with our party's constitution, but all these resolutions had been tabled long before. Accordingly, party supporters from New Brunswick and across Canada were very pleased with the improvements to the EI system.
Employment Insurance March 8th, 2005
Mr. Speaker, it is incredible how popular a topic the Liberal Party of Canada convention is with the opposition parties. I can see that it was closely watched.
Employment Insurance March 8th, 2005
Mr. Speaker, first, my colleague, the Minister of Transport, was in Chicoutimi in Saguenay—Lac-Saint-Jean and not in the Gaspé. Second, we said we would make adjustments to the employment insurance program. We made $300 million in adjustments and seasonal workers in New Brunswick are quite pleased.
Employment Insurance March 8th, 2005
Mr. Speaker, I would ask the leader of the Bloc not to use International Women's Day as a pretext for mixing things up in terms of the 300-hour threshold.
We should all be proud, in fact, that women themselves can choose to enter the labour force. They are now in the work force, and since the country's economy is going well, in fact, more jobs are held by women.
That said, we have already made many improvements in the employment insurance system, especially for women who receive maternity benefits, so that they can return to the work force without penalty.
Parental Leave March 7th, 2005
Mr. Speaker, I believe this represents a major victory for Quebec parents. We have always supported the innovative approach taken by the Government of Quebec, which is aimed at enhancing parental leave and broadening accessibility to it.
We were at last successful in concluding this agreement with Quebec. We had already made reference to a new era of cooperation with our partners and this is an example of what we can do and of how truly flexible our federation is, with the ability to adapt to the aspirations of all parties.
Employment Insurance March 7th, 2005
Mr. Speaker, I salute the work that has been accomplished by the Liberal caucus in the area of employment insurance. I am well aware of the very keen interest the hon. member for Madawaska—Restigouche takes in the people of his region.
We have announced five specific measures to support those with more limited incomes in EI terms, and seasonal workers in particular. I am pleased to say that more than 220,000 individuals across the country will benefit from these measures.
Employment Insurance March 7th, 2005
Mr. Speaker, it is very clear that when one is in the opposition one can never deliver. One can only have wishes and dreams, but will never be able to take concrete action for Canadians, let alone for Quebeckers.
The older workers program, which is currently largely run by the provinces, is being evaluated by them. Perhaps the member for Chambly—Borduas does not know it, but we are working in partnership with the provinces, precisely to try to help all our workers.
Employment Insurance March 7th, 2005
Mr. Speaker, I understand they loved the theme of our national convention, which they followed with great interest. They probably share these concerns.
Not only did we give back to the Employment Insurance Commission the legislative authority to set contribution rates, we also decided that, from now on, the chief actuary will be directly accountable to the commission and will make his report public.
This is a significant improvement over the existing system. It will provide greater independence to the Employment Insurance Commission.
Employment Insurance March 7th, 2005
Mr. Speaker, I see that the Bloc has a problem accepting the success of our national convention this weekend.
The Prime Minister has kept his word. The Government of Canada has made significant improvements to the employment insurance program. We agreed to the plan to add five weeks of benefits. Now we are basing calculations on the 14 best weeks out of 52. It was not for nothing that a spokesperson for the seasonal workers in New Brunswick hailed this announcement as a victory.
Employment Insurance March 7th, 2005
Mr. Speaker, as usual, the Bloc has trouble recognizing when improvements have been made to a program, just as the Prime Minister stated.
In fact, we have made an improvement: we have lowered the threshold to 840 hours for workers entering the work force for the first time. This is two weeks less than the previous requirement and means that in some areas of the country, some people who did not have access to EI will now be eligible for benefits.