Maria Minna

[Business of Supply, March 6th, 2008]

I am sorry, Mr. Speaker, I said “you”. I should have said the hon. member and not “you”. However, the fact is that the NDP voted against reinstating $1 billion of cuts.

[Business of Supply, March 6th, 2008]

You had a choice of working and you chose not to. These were programs that were on--

[Business of Supply, March 6th, 2008]

Mr. Speaker, the hon. member has a very selective memory. She forgets that her party actually voted against a motion that we put forward on November 28 to reinstate the $1 billion cuts that affected women. She has forgotten that the child benefit program, which was introduced by the Liberals, was one of the most effective programs that helped women. She has forgotten the parental leave program, which was introduced by women, the Centres of Excellence for Women's Health across the country, and a whole host of other things, such as the child care program in 2000 for $2 billion, $400 million and then $5 billion.

[Business of Supply, March 6th, 2008]

Mr. Speaker, one of the things that we have been debating back and forth for some time now, which really goes to the core of empowering women, of giving women the ability to empower themselves and to feel strong, to stand up and speak for themselves and change their condition, not as an individual but as a large group of women in different areas, is the word “advocacy”.

Some people seem to look at it and say, as in fact the Minister of Canadian Heritage and Status of Women said, we will not fund women's groups to challenge the government. So, it seems as though that is all.

I wonder if the hon. member could give us a bit of an explanation of the fundamental importance of what this really is, what it does for women, and has done in the past, and why it is important to continue that funding.

[Business of Supply, March 6th, 2008]

Mr. Speaker, on a point of order, I think it is important that members of the House do not take liberties. I did not and never would accept the measures across the way. I resent the hon. member suggesting such a thing.

[Business of Supply, March 6th, 2008]

Mr. Speaker, it was interesting to hear from the hon. member that there is a national housing strategy. I would love to see a copy of it so that I can actually understand what is in it. The homelessness program that he talked about was actually a Liberal program called SCPI which the Conservatives shut down and caused a number of organizations to have to shut their doors. It was reannounced under a different name and now it is called HPI.

The member mentioned the $2.7 billion annually which actually was already there. The subsidies are ongoing, so there is nothing new there.

He talked about the rebuilding of certain areas and old housing. That is the Regent Park reconstruction that is being done which was funded under the Liberals.

We know that in the budget the Conservatives cut CMHC, and I think it was by $45 million. He said there is $1 billion of affordable housing, although we had $1.6 billion. The minister for housing in Ontario is saying that the dollars they are announcing are actually declining.

Would the hon. member be willing to table in the House the national housing strategy with all of the dollars attached in a proper breakdown of where the money is, and where it came from to start with?

[Business of Supply, March 6th, 2008]

Mr. Speaker, the hon. member's comment with respect to choice, the comment that the Conservatives have lifted a large number of women out of poverty and the comment that this program greatly helps single parents are absolutely offensive.

The hon. member talked about choice with regard to the $1,200 but the fact is that none of the women who really need it receive $100 a month. After taxes, they are lucky if they get $50 which does not even pay for one day of child care, never mind finding a space which is not available. I am not quite sure what choice that gives.

I speak to all the women in my riding and those who need it cannot have it. Nothing is available.

The hon. member said that the benefit covers one-third of the cost of child care. How $50 a month covers one-third of the cost is beyond me, because in my riding it certainly does not.

The hon. member talked about the child tax credit of $300, which is not refundable. Unless a person has $2,000 to invest in the first place, which most of these women do not, then they do not get anything back so it is not a refundable credit.

If the Conservatives are negotiating these spaces with the provinces, which the Liberals were doing, that is a great thing, but those choices they keep talking about that women have, maybe they think of earlier education and child care as a babysitting program that can be done at home. This is not what children deserve and it is not what women in this country deserve.

[Business of Supply, March 6th, 2008]

Mr. Speaker, I agree with the hon. member, we should be working together as colleagues and comrades in the House, but I must say that is not always possible.

I would remind the hon. member that the NDP has made it a very partisan House in many ways. On September 28, 2006, the NDP voted with the Conservative government in support of the $1 billion in cuts. I put forward a motion that basically read that the cuts should be rescinded in order to support women and her party chose to vote against it.

In its plan for women, the NDP slammed the Liberals aggressively. We do not do that. We simply put forward our program. We do not even mention the NDP. I will not go through the list but the NDP has often attacked and slammed individuals and has had to apologize in the House for certain smears. There were other times for which it has never apologized.

While I agree with the hon. member that we really need to try, unfortunately, sometimes it does not happen. However, that does not take away from the fact that we need to continue to work for women's issues. I commend the hon. member for her work because I know that she is a member who works hard, collaborates and is a strong participant on the Standing Committee on the Status of Women and has put forward some very good recommendations. I know that we will continue to work together.

I wonder if she could help us in the House to understand two things. First, how can we get women's programs back given the fact that so far we have not been able to convince the government of the day, and, quite frankly, I do not believe we will? Second, how will having an election change anything? That is the crux of it, that is part of what is causing the frustration. Maybe the hon. member has the answers.

[Business of Supply, March 6th, 2008]

Mr. Speaker, it is really sad to hear the hon. member say that Liberals have never given women choice and that her government across has. In all of its budgets, it has done exactly the opposite.

When we look at early learning and child care, $1,200 a year does absolutely nothing. It creates no spaces. In fact, it is not $1,200. It is tax in the hands of the receiver. Most women, especially low income women, receive probably half that. The hon. member knows it does absolutely nothing to create child care spaces or give women choice. If there are no spaces, there is no choice, and I see in my riding of Beaches—East York all the time.

The other tax measure, pension splitting, does not support women. A ton of money is spent, but it benefits only 12% of seniors. Most women who have lower incomes and/or are single do not benefit from that one bit. There are 1.7 million seniors who do not benefit from that program at all.

As for advocacy, the member says that the United Nations' motto this year is “Strong Women, Strong World”. When it comes to empowering women, the United Nations has taken the voice away. It will not fund organizations that work with the country and the government to change policy that would impact and help all women. This is a real—

[Business of Supply, March 6th, 2008]

Mr. Speaker, the hon. member talked about the fact that there were now more women working in the labour force. Previously one of his colleagues talked about the fact that one of the priorities was economic prosperity for women.

I do not understand how, in saying that, the hon. member can justify the government cutting back or eliminating the national child care program. The early learning and child care program facilitates women to get into the labour force and stay in it.

As I said earlier, in my riding women have come to me. They have lost jobs because they do not have child care spaces. The $1,200 does not work. It is not a child care program. It does not absolutely nothing to create spaces.

Also, the pro-active pay equity legislation was supposed to be tabled in the fall of 2005. The government has said no to it entirely. Again, women only earn 71.1¢ to the dollar. When we talk about women's prosperity, that is a major issue.

I fail to see how the government intends to help women with prosperity in the workplace.