Business of Supply  Then we need to go after hitting this target in a whole lot of different ways, supporting, giving a boost to those in greatest need, single mothers, people with disabilities, new immigrants, seniors, children and aboriginals. In terms of studying that kind of specific target, in our last leadership campaign I proposed, as a target to reduce child poverty, 25% over the next five years, 50% over the next ten years.

Business of Supply  As I said earlier, we walk the walk. We are working on recognizing foreign credentials so that indeed the immigrants who come to this country can in fact practise in the profession they had succeeded in in the country from which they came. We are working on foreign credentials recognition, but we have to have the cooperation of the provinces and the professionals to make sure that the credentials are indeed recognized correctly.

Committees of the House  There are about 400 people who work for Coppley, and we make high-end suits, some of which some of you guys may be wearing here. About 90% of the Coppley staff in Hamilton are women and immigrants. Over 75% of the women there can't even read or speak English. We have jobs that allow us to support our families. We are skilled workers who take pride in our high-end, quality products.

Literacy  Speaker, the fact is that Canada's new government is supporting literacy through a number of different ways, not just through the Department of Human Resources and Social Development but also through the Department of Citizenship and Immigration. In the budget we announced $307 million for settlement funding. A lot of that money went to helping newcomers who are some of the victims of not being able to read and write to standard.

Minister of Citizenship and Immigration  Mr. Speaker, back home we would say that the bottom is gone right out of her. The same minister blew another $800 on limousine service to a Confederation Club luncheon on April 20. Last March she wasted $1,300 on airfare and, yes, another limo ride to promote the student summer job program.

Minister of Citizenship and Immigration  Mr. Speaker, that is not all. To arrive in style at a country fair last September, the very same minister rented yet another limo, spending $862 so she could take in the sights for four hours. The minister spent more on one four hour limo ride than her Conservative government gives to parents in one year.

Minister of Citizenship and Immigration  Mr. Speaker, a taxi costs $3 per kilometre. On September 7, 2006, just before she went to a festival, she made an announcement in Toronto about social housing. Again, she spent $1,000 of taxpayers' money on limousines for two days and $300 to go from Pearson Airport to downtown Toronto.

Minister of Citizenship and Immigration  Mr. Speaker, the difference between our government and the previous government is the use of Challenger jets. The biggest difference is that every time the Liberal ministers wanted to go anywhere, home for the weekend or otherwise, they were not getting into a car. They were getting on a Challenger jet for the occasion.

Minister of Citizenship and Immigration  Mr. Speaker, here is another example of how Conservatives waste taxpayer dollars. This past July the former human resources minister went to Winnipeg to present a fake $100 child benefit cheque. Her flight alone cost 20 times the monthly child care benefit. Now we learn that she exceeds the Juno joyriding heritage minister for her love of limousine travel.

Foreign Credentials  Speaker, there is so much that could be done by the federal government itself, if it could just sort out the relationships between the offices that give the visas and points to these immigrants and the federal departments that try to connect up people with jobs. Then we would not have so many people living in poverty, earning minimum wage, driving cabs when they are doctors and working in restaurants when they are engineers.

Citizenship and Immigration committee  This is my Canadian birth certificate, and this is my permanent residence card in Canada, which says I'm a landed immigrant. So it's quite insulting to me. We talked earlier about Bill S-2. Bill S-2 did not correct this problem. It gave children like me the right to come back to Canada, but then I have to pay a Canadian head tax, and I can't bring my children.

Citizenship and Immigration committee  When I brought that little anomaly to the attention of the Senate, every senator's head in the room was going up and down as if saying this doesn't make any sense. Seven days later, the then acting director general of Citizenship and Immigration, Patricia Birkett, said they were going to throw out the Benner decision effective August 14, 2004. That brought in all of these other lost provisions. It didn't work, and that's why we have all these different groups.

Citizenship and Immigration committee  However, with all due respect, Minister, I would like to remind you that you are the Minister of Immigration and Citizenship, that your mandate has been assigned you by the Prime Minister and that it is your responsibility to solve the problems, not to ask your colleagues to do it for you.

Citizenship and Immigration committee  Chairman, whether it's front and centre. I was told that at every Canadian mission, and in particular any mission that has an immigration office, that information would be made available.

Citizenship and Immigration committee  Those are skills and talents that we need in this country, quite frankly, because our labour market needs are such right now that we're not getting enough of those skills home-grown. We're going to have to increasingly rely, going forward, on immigrants to meet those needs. We have taken a number of steps going forward. I hope to have some announcements to make soon on some exciting steps that we've taken in this regard, to make sure that those who have credentials get to exercise them here.