House of Commons photoWon her last election, in 2006, with 46% of the vote.
Human Resources October 25th, 2005
Mr. Speaker, I am very proud of the programs that we have put forward recently to address the needs of seasonal workers. The programs that the member opposite is referring to are the pilot programs. One in particular is the best 14 weeks, which I would like to announce is on track to being on October 30. In addition to that, we have made about $2.5 billion worth of annual improvements to the EI program to be responsive to the needs of Canadian workers.
Export and Import of Rough Diamonds Act October 25th, 2005
moved that Bill S-36, An Act to amend the Export and Import of Rough Diamonds Act, be read the second time and referred to a committee.
Criminal Code October 25th, 2005
moved that Bill S-37, An Act to amend the Criminal Code and Cultural Property Export and Import Act, be now read the second time and referred to a committee.
Employment Insurance October 21st, 2005
Mr. Speaker, I would also like to add that I did call Minister Courchesne yesterday and expressed to her that we are going forward with the agreement that we have with Quebec so that Quebec can have its maternity and benefits program in place by January 1, 2006. We are working collaboratively and very well with Minister Courchesne and the Quebec government to achieve this.
Employment Insurance October 21st, 2005
Mr. Speaker, let me say I am very pleased at the Supreme Court of Canada's decision that recognizes and upholds the federal jurisdiction as it relates to EI benefits and maternity benefits. I am also proud to say that there will be no interruption in any of the benefits that Canadians receive. In fact, the judgment does say that we do have the responsibility to evolve EI programs as society evolves, as it relates to the workplace.
Forest Industry October 20th, 2005
Mr. Speaker, let me be clear on what I said. First of all, I said that where there is a large layoff in a community, we cannot turn a blind eye as a federal government and we must always be concerned and sensitive. I also said that there is a devolved labour market agreement with that province, so therefore it has primary responsibility for the layoff.
However, I said we would work together with the employer and the employees to take a look at what we could do in the long term.
Softwood Lumber October 7th, 2005
Mr. Speaker, we are always concerned when there are mass layoffs. We are very sensitive to that. The department does have a program when there are layoffs that are coming forward. We work together with employers to make sure workers can get temporary income support as soon as possible. We look at programs to retrain those workers.
We are in the process of developing a strategy for older workers and are working very closely with the province of Quebec. We are meeting every three weeks to develop that strategy quickly.
Taxation October 7th, 2005
Mr. Speaker, let me be clear again. I am working closely with minister Fournier, the Quebec minister of education and chair of CMEC. We are evaluating our shared priorities. The areas that we are looking at are the areas that we have traditionally occupied with respect to access and research. There is no intention to infringe on provincial jurisdictions.
Taxation October 7th, 2005
Mr. Speaker, I am delighted that the provinces also recognize the importance of investing in people and learning, and promoting the skills learning agenda. I am working very closely with the CMEC chair, minister Jean-Marc Fournier, and looking at ways that we can collaborate to make progress toward our mutually shared agenda.
Clothing and Textile Industries October 6th, 2005
Mr. Speaker, the government is very sensitive to older workers. As the industries are under great pressure, we have committed and are still committed to working with the Government of Quebec and other provinces to develop a comprehensive strategy to address the issues of older workers and the competitive nature of the industries they are in.