Pierre Pettigrew

[Transitional Jobs Fund, May 28th, 1998]

Mr. Speaker, there is still money in the transitional jobs fund. It has been committed, but will be spent between now and March 31.

Our main active measure is not the transitional jobs fund but the $2.7 billion we will be transferring to the Quebec government under the Quebec job market development agreement. So, that is $2.7 billion from the employment insurance fund.

This is much more important than what the hon. member for Kamouraska—Rivière-du-Loup—Témiscouata—Les Basques is complaining about and for which he has never recognized the headway we have been making in this country.

[Employment Insurance, May 27th, 1998]

Anyone will agree that an employment insurance system that is too readily accessible is an incentive for young people to enter the labour market too soon, sometimes before they are ready. This is something I have seen personally in many regions of Quebec. That is why we have greater ambitions for young Quebeckers.

[Employment Insurance, May 27th, 1998]

The fact of the matter is that those who have not accumulated the required hours of work do not qualify. I think that when—

[Employment Insurance, May 27th, 1998]

Mr. Speaker, if young people are not eligible for employment insurance benefits, it is precisely because they have not yet entered the labour market. This is obvious.

[Employment Insurance, May 27th, 1998]

Mr. Speaker, we are also giving an insurance premium holiday to any business that will hire young people, in an effort to help young Canadians enter the workforce. That too is part of the employment insurance reform.

What I said yesterday is that we, on this side of the House, have ambitions for our young people. We want them to have access to the labour market, and we know that this will be achieved through greater skills and knowledge.

What I said yesterday is that, when it is too easy to get EI benefits, this becomes an incentive to—

[Transitional Jobs Fund, May 27th, 1998]

Mr. Speaker, what I said was that there are $300 million in the transitional fund, $95 million or 30% of which is for Quebec and has to last until March 31, 1999.

It is committed at the moment, because, understandably, if we want to spend it by March 31, 1999, we have to make commitments. There is nevertheless some manoeuvring room, because the costs of projects are sometimes less than forecast. So there is some flexibility, but less so at the end of the program than at its start. This is how responsible management works, generally.

[Transitional Jobs Fund, May 27th, 1998]

Mr. Speaker, the transitional jobs fund is clearly an extremely popular program that has created thousands of jobs in Quebec and elsewhere in Canada.

It is a transitional fund intended to last three years, that is, until March 31, 1999. It is to be expected that funds lasting until March 31, 1999 will be committed now, if they are to be spent by March 31, 1999.

The funds are committed, but they have not yet all been spent. They will be spent over the coming months until March 31, 1999.

[Bps Call Centre, May 27th, 1998]

Mr. Speaker, I have never heard of this particular case that taxpayers would be paying twice for jobs. This is a very vague and ambiguous question. I will look into the particular case.

I can tell the member that the transitional job fund has created thousands of very good and solid jobs in difficult regions in Canada. We are very proud of having created those jobs all over the country. I am very sorry that those members are not happy to see a government that is investing in helping unemployed Canadians to go back to work. That is what Canadians expect of us.

[Employment Insurance, May 26th, 1998]

Mr. Speaker, it is precisely because we listen to the unemployed that we know their strongest wish is to get back to work as quickly as possible.

This is why our government has put our fiscal house in order. This is why it has set up a transitional job fund and taken active measures to help the unemployed get back to work. This is what these people expect from us, and this is what we try to do for them.

[Bc Mine In Black Lake, May 26th, 1998]

Mr. Speaker, I see that the fifth Bloc MP is continuing in the time-honoured tradition of the Bloc: passive measures only. This is totally in keeping with the logic of this party, which dwells completely on the past.

I would point out that our government was the first to act in connection with the BC mine. We gave $3 million to help the miners to get training, and wage subsidies in other fields.

We were the first. They were the ones who opted not to take the POWA, which was already available to them.