Dan Albas

[COVID-19 Pandemic, April 11th, 2020]

Mr. Chair, the Prime Minister announced earlier that the CERB would be changed to allow people to work and be eligible. This motion today calls on the government to make those changes. It is being stated both here in the House and in the media that the program is now open to those who work.

Can the minister please confirm that the CERB still requires no employment income and that these changes still have yet to be made? When will they be made?

[COVID-19 Pandemic, April 11th, 2020]

Mr. Chair, this is for the Minister of Employment. Will expectant parents who will no longer meet their necessary hours to access full parental leave benefits due to COVID-19 layoffs be granted any assistance to ensure they can access those benefits?

[Questions Passed as Orders for Returns, April 11th, 2020]

With regard to the Employment Insurance (EI) adjudication process and the current status of EI applications: (a) what is the current backlog of adjudications waiting in the queue; (b) what is the current average time between the beginning of an adjudication process and its completion; (c) what percentage of the applications are removed from the automated process after 28 days and sent to manual adjudication; (d) what percentage of EI applications are handled automatically (i.e. without manual intervention); (e) what percentage of applications are handled by the automated system and is that close to the original estimate of 85%; and (f) what action is the government taking to address the delays and backlog in the adjudication system?

[COVID-19 Emergency Response Act, March 25th, 2020]

Mr. Speaker, I certainly appreciate hearing the member's contribution to this debate this morning.

She did mention inequality. There certainly are a number of different inequalities in this country, things that all of us here would like to address. One of them that I have heard from people is the difference in high-speed Internet access in many rural areas.

I would like to ask the member a bit about New Brunswick. Many people are finding some comfort, when they self-isolate to protect their families from COVID-19, in being able to communicate with the outside world through the Internet and in being able to make a living through telework. What are the member's thoughts on that?

I know that in my province of British Columbia, particularly in certain parts of my area, such as Logan Lake and Princeton and Keremeos, this is a big challenge.

[COVID-19 Pandemic, March 25th, 2020]

Madam Chair, this bill states that one would not be eligible if one received employment insurance after one's employment ceased. Will a fisher or someone in the tourism and hospitality industries who was laid off last year, received EI and has now exhausted it, and the job that person expected to have this summer is gone due to COVID-19, be eligible for this benefit?

[COVID-19 Pandemic, March 25th, 2020]

Madam Chair, we are looking for clarity. Will people who are here as temporary foreign workers who lose their jobs be able to apply for this benefit, yes or no?

[COVID-19 Pandemic, March 25th, 2020]

Madam Chair, last Friday the government announced temporary foreign workers already here would be extended from one year to two, and in certain industries it will be easier and faster to bring in a temporary foreign worker. We see in this legislation tonight, under the definition of “worker”, it says “resident of Canada”.

Does this new benefit apply to citizens and permanent residents or to anyone who lives here, such as those on a work visa?

[COVID-19 Pandemic, March 25th, 2020]

Madam Chair, many people who are about to go on parental leave have been laid off and have had to start EI, which will reduce the time that they can be on parental leave. Will their leave be extended to ensure that they can take their planned time with their new child?

[COVID-19 Pandemic, March 25th, 2020]

Madam Chair, I would like to direct my question to the Minister of Employment.

Applications for regular EI have overwhelmed the system and no one can get hold of Service Canada to apply. With a whole new benefit, how will the caseload be managed to ensure that people can apply and how are staff resources being redirected to support Canadians?

[Opposition Motion—Pharmacare, March 12th, 2020]

Madam Speaker, the government has an infrastructure bank that does not really fund much infrastructure. We have a centralized payroll system that was supposed to save us millions of dollars but, when it was finally put in place by the government and the button was pushed to start it up, we ended up with many public servants not being paid.

How is the member so confident that a national program could be implemented when there are 10 provincial systems that do a fairly good job? There could be improvements. This is an area where there are so many complexities, including drug choices and millions of Canadians. Does the member think that a national program with such complexity could be put in operation? Will we end up with another situation like the Phoenix pay issue, with so many lives on the line?