House of Commons photoWon his last election, in 2021, with 35% of the vote.
Business of Supply May 13th, 2015
Mr. Chair, I read it in the AANDC report. It was the first time that it ever kept those numbers.
Do members know what those numbers are? The literacy score is at 21% for boys. The numeracy rate is 18%. I do not know if the minister can name a country in the world where those rates would be lower.
Will the minister confirm that the internal audit into elementary and secondary schools on reserve has been cancelled?
Business of Supply May 13th, 2015
Mr. Chair, they said the money was sunsetted because they had reached their targets for improving first nations education. I asked what, according to this department, the literacy and numeracy rates are for first nations students in Ontario who took the standardized provincial tests.
Business of Supply May 13th, 2015
Mr. Chair, I read in the estimates that they are cutting $133.4 million this year. It is written in the main estimates. I could get him the page. It might help him.
I will continue with the Ontario region. Would the minister tell me what the literacy and numeracy rates are for aboriginal children in the schools that are under his authority in the Ontario region?
Business of Supply May 13th, 2015
Mr. Chair, in James Bay, in Attawapiskat, the per capita student funding is $8,000. The minister might want to write that down. If that child transfers to the provincial system, the federal government will pay $16,000. That means that the children in Attawapiskat are getting 50% less than children who are being transferred into the provincial system.
Will the minister tell me how much of the first nations education funding is being cut this year in the main estimates?
Business of Supply May 13th, 2015
Mr. Chair, I appreciate that he is going to pass that on. Would he be able to tell me, then, if a child transfers from a community like Attawapiskat to the provincial school board, what the federal government will pay to the provincial school board? These are agreements in place that Aboriginal Affairs has to deal with.
What would be the amount that is transferred from a community in an Ontario region to a provincial school board?
Business of Supply May 13th, 2015
Mr. Chair, I am sorry, I think the minister misunderstood the question. I was asking about the per capita student funding. Each child carries a per capita. That is how the minister funds education. I am sure he knows that, so he should be able to give me the number.
What is the per capita funding per student in an aboriginal school on reserve in Ontario?
Business of Supply May 13th, 2015
Mr. Chair, I will now turn to the issue of education. I will focus mostly on the Ontario region, so we are not jumping around.
Will the minister tell the House what the per student funding is in the Ontario region that is provided by the federal government to local education authorities for first nations students?
Business of Supply May 13th, 2015
Mr. Chair, I am not asking him to check everyday. I am asking whether he bothers to keep track of the children that are under his responsibility that his own department says is 30,000 to 40,000. It is not a provincial responsibility; it is his responsibility.
Will the minister confirm that he is initiating discussions to transfer first nations child and family services programs to other groups as a result of the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal ruling on whether the federal government has discriminatory practices against first nations children? Have those discussions been initiated?
Business of Supply May 13th, 2015
Mr. Chair, actually, I got it from one of the minister's own documents. The number is 30,000 to 40,000. I think the minister does not have his facts right. The obligation to pay under the 1965 agreement is from the federal to the provincial.
Does the minister not keep track of the number of children that are in care that his government is paying for?
Business of Supply May 13th, 2015
Mr. Chair, I thank the minister for being here tonight. To move along, I will give headings in terms of where I am going. I do not want to have anyone jumping out and trying to grab papers out from underneath.
I will start with child welfare and child equity issues. How many children, 14 and under, in state care right now are aboriginal?