Madam Speaker, I rise to inform my hon. colleagues in the House that on behalf of the Government of Canada I am sending a proposal to the provincial and territorial governments today. It proposes a new partnership with them on active employment measures.
This partnership respects provincial responsibility for labour market training. It recognizes that both levels of government must find new ways to help unemployed Canadians get back to work as rapidly as possible.
The proposal responds to the long standing provincial and territorial call for greater responsibility in the field of labour market development. It provides a basis for managing the federal withdrawal from labour market training the Prime Minister announced last November.
This represents flexible federalism. The proposal provides for a new federal/provincial/territorial partnership in labour market activities. Provinces will have the opportunity to deliver active employment measures funded through the employment insurance account; use EI funds to tailor active measures to meet local and provincial or territorial labour market priorities; provide labour market services such as counselling and screening now delivered by the Government of Canada; match local labour market demand and supply through job placement services; and assist individuals with career action plans to address their employment needs and guide them to successful employment opportunities.
The proposal retains the legal responsibility of the Government of Canada for the funds of the EI account and the requirement that these funds be spent effectively and efficiently in a way that achieves agreed to results.
Under this proposal the Government of Canada will make approximately $2 billion available to the provinces and territories for active employment measures and for the related labour market services the Government of Canada now delivers.
The Government of Canada is committed to working in concert with our provincial and territorial counterparts to develop new labour market arrangements. These new agreements will help us provide appropriate transitional assistance to Canadians who face temporary periods of unemployment. Bilateral agreements will reflect the diverse and changing circumstances that exist across the country from province to province to territories.
The Government of Canada will maintain a significant role in labour market issues. As I indicated, these agreements will be consistent with the Government of Canada's fiduciary responsibility for the employment insurance account. We will continue to be responsible for labour market matters that are pan-Canadian in scope. These include the interprovincial mobility of workers, labour market information and national sectoral partnerships on sectors.
We will continue to respond to national economic crises and facilitate labour market adjustments. This initiative is consistent with the best traditions of the Canadian federation. Federalism in this country has always been a living and creative solution to challenges of Canadian life. We must adapt to meet the needs of each succeeding generation.
A major challenge that faces us now is creating more jobs in the context of a new, demanding, challenging global economy. Renewal to our federation through flexible initiatives such as this proposal will contribute to help put Canadians back to work.
This proposal builds on the announcement on labour market training made by the Prime Minister on November 27, 1995. That commitment was restated in the speech from the throne earlier this year. We have already begun to take action to implement it. Funding has already ended for cooperative education and workplace-based training.
Under this proposal we will phase out the remaining federal presence in labour market training in less than three years. Our government is committed to working in concert with our provincial and territorial partners on the design, delivery and evaluation of active employment measures.
We understand that some provincial and territorial governments will want to take on more of these responsibilities than others. We are ready to accommodate that diversity.
This is what we mean by flexible federalism. The provinces and territories will have the opportunity to shape the design and deliver the new active employment measures in order to achieve maximum results.
We look forward to achieving mutually agreeable arrangements with our provincial and territorial partners. The agreements will emphasize results. They will underscore our responsibilities to each other, to employers and to the men and women who pay the employment insurance premiums that will fund these measures.
The transition to this new partnership must be smooth and effective. We will carry it out in a way that ensures our clients' needs are met. We will ensure there is no interruption of these services to Canadians.
Transitional employment measures will be delivered through human resource centres of Canada or community based services until new federal-provincial-territorial arrangements are in place.
Some Government of Canada employees may see their work shift to another employer through these new agreements. In such cases the transfer of employees in keeping with established government policies will be a very important aspect of our negotiations. We expect provinces and territories will want to take on many of these experienced employees. They are people who know their community and regional labour markets well. The Government of Canada is absolutely committed to ensuring the rights of our employees will be fully respected.
I believe this proposal of the Government of Canada is a new page in the evolution of the Canadian federation. The door is now open to more efficient, effective and flexible approaches that will help more unemployed Canadians find work, and that is our objective.
