Human Resources committee  Well, I think I will be echoing what a lot of commentators said. I think the Prime Minister and a lot of political leaders were in a sense backed into the corner of damned if you do, damned if you don't. I can't remember if that's unparliamentary, Mr. Chair. I apologize. The f

Human Resources committee  In the longer-term picture, it's always about working with very young people, elementary school and up, on the value of trades and telling them that these are good jobs. Oftentimes, many of these trades are very technological. They are skilled jobs, where you're making good pay,

Human Resources committee  You know, when I expressed those opinions, they weren't so much based on the individual actions of the federal government as much as the mood out there, particularly in Ontario, where people were saying that the federal government needed to take leadership in long-term care. We

Human Resources committee  Sure. I mean, listen, I think we have to find a balance. We're in the middle of a global pandemic. There are all sorts of logistical reasons. At the same time, as someone who has lived and breathed this, I do see great value in having Parliament find a way to sit, to have the bac

Human Resources committee  Just for the record, I had retired at that point, but I was certainly supportive and intrigued when then Premier Wynne brought it forward. Basic income is huge. It has a lot of political challenges to it. That was what I said in my article. I also think that we don't know what

Human Resources committee  I think it's crucial. Again, I think we need to rethink those who are at the bottom, meaning at the bottom of the wage scale. There were some steps made. As I said, we can get all hung up on the partisan aspects and who made what and all that, but there were some steps made at th

Human Resources committee  I can only comment as an observer, and a former politician, too, who sat around the table. I was never minister of health. Obviously, I think this has given us an opportunity to look at a lot of systems, including the long-term care system. There's been a big rethink. Long-term

Human Resources committee  I'm going to go back a bit to what I said. I hope for two things. First of all, I hope that we have a real rethink in our society about essential and precarious workers and issues like sick leave, and even issues around benefits, and obviously with issues around pay. I'm in front

Human Resources committee  Thank you. In moments like this, I'm glad I retired from politics. I can't speak to the specifics of what's happening federally, but certainly I can talk about the importance of infrastructure. I hope we see those partnerships, and that the partnerships take into account the vi

Human Resources committee  Thank you, Mr. Chair. First, I would like to thank you for inviting me to join committee members to discuss the federal government's response to the COVID-19 pandemic. I come to this question from a variety of perspectives. I spent eight years on Parliament Hill as a political