Lost his last election, in 2006, with 38% of the vote.
Employment Insurance March 10th, 1998
Mr. Speaker, as I said yesterday in this House, I am delighted that the number of people on welfare in Quebec is at its lowest in the past five years.
This is certainly the result of the economic reforms in this country, which have led to improved growth in the labour market. Because we have a dynamic market and we have corrected certain systems that were operating very badly, our economy is running better.
Employment Insurance March 9th, 1998
Mr. Speaker, as I had occasion to state a little earlier in this House, I have not yet had the opportunity to read Mr. Fortin's report.
From what I could get from this morning's papers, this is a study which looked at the last three employment insurance reforms, back to 1990, and speculates on the impact on welfare over the next ten years. Thus a 20-year period is involved.
The figure of 200,000 additional recipients is over those 20 years. We will analyze it but I do not believe the way it has been described here reflects the scientific reality that is found in the report.
Child Care Expenses March 9th, 1998
Mr. Speaker, I think my colleague, the Minister of Finance, just gave a very good reply.
Obviously, we will make sure this tax measure benefits Quebeckers in an appropriate manner, as we always do. Indeed, we also make sure the Quebec government and Quebeckers get their share. This is why transfers of some $10 billion are made to the Quebec government, something which should help Mr. Landry when he tables his budget next month.
Employment Insurance March 9th, 1998
Mr. Speaker, the number of women in this country whose work is now insured has risen by 450,000. In other words, 450,000 more women are covered by employment insurance, because access to the system is now hours-based.
With this new system, if they have been in the work force during the last five years, they are now entitled to active measures to help them return to the work force. This is a good reform, and one that will help women get back into the work force.
Employment Insurance March 9th, 1998
Mr. Speaker, our reform was also for the benefit of women, because it modified the system, which had been based on the number of weeks worked. We brought in one based on the number of hours worked, which benefits part-timers, who are very often women.
Other elements of our reform are also extremely helpful to women. For example, they now have a far stronger attachment to the work force, and can take far greater advantage of active measures to help them return to work than in the past.
Employment Insurance March 9th, 1998
Absolutely. Members can check the figures.
I can also tell the House that the preliminary figures available to us show a decrease in the number of new applications from women, and in the total number of new applications. But I do not think it very likely that this decrease can be chalked up to the reform. There has also been an improvement in the economic context, with the creation of one million additional jobs. This means fewer people needing EI.
Employment Insurance March 9th, 1998
Mr. Speaker, I would like to begin by pointing out that the number of welfare recipients in Quebec is the lowest it has been in four years.
Employment Insurance March 9th, 1998
Mr. Speaker, I must say that I have not yet had the honour and the pleasure of reading the study by Mr. Fortin that the media drew to my attention this morning. I look forward to it with much anticipation.
Mr. Fortin, however, was trying to measure the impact of several successive EI reforms, and was not looking just at the reform it was my pleasure to introduce last year. He was also looking at the reform introduced by the Conservative government in 1990 and another reform in 1994.
I stand by what I have already said on this topic, and I see that the time—
Employment Insurance February 26th, 1998
Mr. Speaker, I did review the first annual assessment report on the significant reform we initiated with respect to employment insurance.
I think there are early signs that Canadians are adapting to these changes. In fact, there are regions where workers managed to find a few extra weeks of work over the year to maintain their benefit levels. I think that is the kind of incentive we must support as a society.
I have already acknowledged in this House I am concerned about the number of participants in this plan and, as I said, I will address this question again in the next few months.
Employment Insurance February 26th, 1998
Mr. Speaker, I do not know whether that is everyone's view. Canadians are perfectly happy that we had the courage to change the EI system.
The opposition is asking us to take a step backward to an obsolete system that no longer served them well with respect to the modern labour market. They are asking us to take a step backward.
As a government, we will do the responsible thing. We want to serve Canadians well with respect to the current labour market. I have admitted to being concerned about the people in the system; we are going to look into the matter and make the right decisions.