Kellie Leitch

[Employment, March 28th, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, this government is putting job creation and training in the hands of individuals who are job creators and employers. There are too many jobs that are going unfilled in Canada because employers cannot find workers to fill those roles.

We have the Canada jobs grant and our initiatives with respect to apprentices, and we are moving forward on 5,000 new internships for post-secondary education individuals. This is what we are doing. We are creating jobs and opportunities for young Canadians.

I encourage the NDP members to get on board instead of raising taxes. They should get with our jobs plan.

[Employment, March 28th, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, the minister has informed me that she has discussed this matter with the member. She has directed Service Canada to work with the employer in the local community to provide what support they can. Information sessions have been scheduled to provide details, benefits, programs and support services for the constituents in this riding. There is a community group that has been established with government representation, and we plan to work together to help the members of this community.

[Air Canada, March 27th, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, we sympathize with those who have lost their jobs through no fault of their own. EI is made available to eligible individuals in a timely manner because of the amount of time that it takes to finalize bankruptcy proceedings. Individuals are made aware that any severance that they receive in a bankruptcy process will be considered earnings and, therefore, could be deducted from their EI.

[Employment Insurance, March 25th, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, as has been said many times before in this House, for those who are unable to find work, EI will continue to be there for them as it always has been.

EI recipients have always had the responsibility of undertaking a reasonable job search by preparing resumes, attending job workshops and contacting prospective employers. There has always been a requirement to accept a suitable job.

The new definitions of “reasonable job search” and “suitable employment” clarify these responsibilities. At the same time, the new definition of “suitable employment” takes into account people's personal circumstances, working conditions, the time it takes to commute to work, the type of work they are qualified to do and the rate of pay.

The purpose of EI is to provide temporary assistance to those who have lost their jobs through no fault of their own. Our top priority is job creation, economic growth and long-term prosperity for Canadians. When will the opposition finally support our plan, which has already created 950,000 net new jobs?

[Employment Insurance, March 25th, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, there has been a great deal of confusion concerning the updated employment insurance regulations. The opposition parties have been recklessly misleading Canadians.

My colleague should rest assured that it is not our intention to punish employment insurance claimants or to harm regional economies. On the contrary, as we have said from the beginning, we want all Canadians who want to work to be able to work.

Our aim is to connect EI claimants with available jobs in their local labour markets. We need to ensure that Canadians have access to and are skilled enough for the jobs that are being created.

Full-time jobs have been increasing across all occupations and in many industries. In fact, since July 2009, employment has grown by more than 950,000 jobs. This represents the strongest growth by far among G7 countries. Of those 950,000 jobs, most of them are full-time positions.

Let me be clear. We want to make sure all Canadian regions prosper.

We empathize with Canadians who have lost their jobs and who are making the effort to find work in their area, but who have not succeeded. These Canadians can rest assured that they will continue to receive employment insurance.

Rest assured these changes will be administered using common sense and will take everything into account among local labour market conditions.

[The Budget, March 25th, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, the member presented some excellent information from the budget.

I know he has done outstanding work as the chairman of the human resources committee and in the House of Commons. I know he has travelled across the country and has heard the concerns with respect to labour shortages in his local riding in Saskatchewan and particularly in his hometown.

Could the member comment on how this budget will address those pressing needs in his local community and how his work as chairman of the human resources committee has contributed so much to this budget?

[Intergovernmental Relations, March 22nd, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, Canada's economic action plan 2013 is focused on fixing our country's skill shortage by giving Canadians new or better jobs. We want to work with the provinces and take training from governments and provide that opportunity to employers and employees.

Our government is taking decisive action to create good jobs and see a higher quality of life for hard-working Canadians. We encourage the opposition members to support this initiative.

[Human Resources and Skills Development, March 22nd, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the hon. member for West Vancouver—Sunshine Coast—Sea to Sky Country for his huge contributions to the budget.

The minister has informed me that she has spoken with her provincial counterparts and looks forward to working with all of them on the new Canada job grant.

As the National Association of Career Colleges has said:

Thanks to the reforms proposed in this budget, including the new Canada Jobs Grant, an increased number of unemployed and underemployed Canadians will be able to obtain the training that they need to access jobs that in demand now, and will be in the future.

I could go on, Mr. Speaker, but we are doing a great—

[Pensions, March 22nd, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, let me be very clear. The opposition has not supported any of the initiatives we put forward to support seniors, whether that be the increase in the GIS, the guaranteed income supplement or the creation of a minister of state to support seniors.

This government has been focused on making sure seniors are supported. We will continue to do that. We ask the NDP why it never supported any of these initiatives that we put forward.

[Pensions, March 22nd, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, seniors have contributed so much to building this country. That is why this government has been focused on supporting them, whether that be through the increase in the GIS, the largest increase in the last quarter century, which the opposition did not support, or through our investments that have lowered poverty rates down from the over 5.2% under the Liberals.

We are focused on making sure that seniors are supported, unlike the opposition parties.