House of Commons photoWon his last election, in 2015, with 67% of the vote.
The Economy December 9th, 2014
Mr. Speaker, since this government was elected in 2006, the number of low-income Canadian families has dropped considerably.
In fact, we have lowered taxes for more than 800,000 families. With the Prime Minister's announcement last month, we are giving an additional $1,200 a year to the average family. This will help low-income families in particular.
Employment Insurance December 9th, 2014
Mr. Speaker, it seems that the NDP has the same solution for every problem: hire tens of thousands of government union members.
We, on the other hand, believe that we need to deliver public services efficiently. That is why we have reduced the costs for processing each EI application by 42% through automation and other improvements. We are hiring more staff and we are continuing to speed up the process.
I would like to once again thank my parliamentary secretary for his recommendations on this file.
Employment Insurance December 9th, 2014
Mr. Speaker, as the Prime Minister underscored, the NDP does not understand that we have an obligation to deliver public services efficiently.
We have done just that. We have reduced the costs for processing each EI application by 42% through automation and through smarter procedures. That is why the vast majority of EI applicants receive their benefits within the service standard of 28 days.
We are going to improve our service, because I am implementing many of the recommendations that I received from my hard-working parliamentary secretary from Nova Scotia. The NDP should be thanking us for that instead of criticizing us.
Employment Insurance December 9th, 2014
Mr. Speaker, as the Prime Minister just said, the NDP never wants to streamline public services.
This government is proud of the fact that it reduced the cost of processing each EI claim by 42%. We have found more cost-effective ways of delivering important programs to Canadians. That is what taxpayers want and that is what they expect.
I accepted my parliamentary secretary's advice in order to process EI claims more quickly.
Employment Insurance December 9th, 2014
Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the hon. member for her question. Obviously, the government is committed to providing a good level of service to EI recipients.
I would like to thank my parliamentary secretary for the important work he did. He provided me with a report on processing EI claims more quickly, which we are implementing. Thanks to these commitments, we will give EI benefits to qualified claimants as quickly as possible.
Social Development December 8th, 2014
Mr. Speaker, the hon. member's characterization of this matter, unfortunately, is not accurate. In fact, the government passed legislation allowing for parents to qualify for sickness benefits if they fall ill or injured while receiving employment insurance parental benefits. Since March of last year, this change has allowed for thousands of parents to receive EI sickness benefits.
I cannot comment on matters that are currently before the courts, but I can confirm that the litigation to which he refers does not deal with maternity benefits whatsoever.
Social Development December 8th, 2014
Mr. Speaker, unfortunately, the hon. member is absolutely wrong because no one was paid to do nothing. They were appointed and then, of course, there was a training program so that those who sit on the tribunal would be prepared to make decisions. As I just said, the tribunal had rules in place to give appellants one year to submit evidence to support their appeals. Clearly, the tribunal's rules need to be obeyed.
Social Development December 8th, 2014
In point of fact, Mr. Speaker, when people are appointed to a quasi-judicial body such as the Social Security Tribunal, they must undergo a comprehensive training program to be aware of the complex legal issues with which they will deal. Therefore, members are never in a position to begin making decisions immediately.
Furthermore, the tribunal had in place an evidentiary rule to give appellants up to one year to submit evidence to support their appeals. That is one of the reasons why the tribunal was not in a position to begin processing large numbers of appeals early on.
Social Development December 8th, 2014
Unfortunately, Mr. Speaker, the hon. member is mistaken about the nature of the case. Obviously I cannot comment on details of a matter that is sub judice.
Having said that, the case does not deal with maternity benefits. He is confusing maternity and parental benefits. They are two completely different benefits that are given for completely different reasons. I would happily offer the member a technical briefing to explain the difference.
We sympathize, obviously, with parents who find themselves part of these situations. That is why we have passed legislation allowing parents to qualify for sickness benefits if they fall ill or injured while receiving EI parental benefits.
Child Care December 4th, 2014
Mr. Speaker, I am not familiar with the precise subsidy to which the member is referring. I can tell him, however, that the government is increasing the child care tax deduction, which will assist parents who pay for institutional child care.
Of course, we have announced billions of dollars in additional support for families with kids, including through the child tax benefit. All together, these benefits will amount to about $1,200 in incremental support for the average family with pre-school children. That is considerable support that respects the choices of families.