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Results: 1 - 15 of 99
View Diane St-Jacques Profile
Lib. (QC)
Mr. Speaker, I am requesting that the division be deferred until this evening, after government orders.
View Diane St-Jacques Profile
Lib. (QC)
Mr. Speaker, following consultation with the parties, you will find unanimous consent for the following motion:
That the Government Order for consideration of Bill S-17 be discharged and that the said bill be ordered for consideration at second reading and placed at the end of the order of precedence for consideration of private members' business in the name of the member for West Vancouver—Sunshine Coast.
View Diane St-Jacques Profile
Lib. (QC)
Mr. Speaker, we know that older workers can continue to make significant contributions to the labour force and to their communities. The pilot projects have shown us this.
My question is for the Minister of Human Resources and Skills Development. Given the success of these pilot projects, does the government intend to extend them or make them permanent?
View Diane St-Jacques Profile
Lib. (QC)
Mr. Speaker, I am very proud to be able to tell you about an absolutely exceptional Internet site that was created by citizens in the riding of Shefford. Jereussis.com is a virtual gateway to learning.
Its designers recognize that every student is unique and, with this site, give students an opportunity to develop that unique potential. Their mission is to encourage academic success by providing French-speaking secondary school students in Canada with an opportunity for better student-teacher interaction.
Their mandate: to optimize learning opportunities through an innovative concept of academic assistance through both virtual and real contact. This project was made possible by a grant from the Industry Canada SchoolNet program.
Congratulations to Micheline Émond and all her Jereussis.com team. They have understood that success builds confidence and self-esteem, and academic success means involvement and an upbeat attitude.
View Diane St-Jacques Profile
Lib. (QC)
Madam Speaker, discussions have taken place among all parties and you will find that there is unanimous consent for the following motion:
That the sixth report of the Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs, concerning the membership and associate membership of committees, be deemed tabled and concurred in.
View Diane St-Jacques Profile
Lib. (QC)
Mr. Speaker, I move that the division stand deferred until the end of government orders tomorrow.
View Diane St-Jacques Profile
Lib. (QC)
Mr. Speaker, on Wednesday evening, the red carpet was rolled out on Saint-Denis Street in Montreal to welcome the upper crust of the arts community for the world premiere of the highly anticipated musical Don Juan.
Critics have nothing but praise for this magnificent show. I am especially proud to hear and read comments about the young female lead role of Maria, played by Marie-Ève Janvier, a young artist from Roxton Pond, in my riding.
The very talented Marie-Ève, who has worked tirelessly, what with flamenco lessons and fencing lessons, is on her way to becoming a new entertainment star.
With more than 200,000 copies of the album sold and Don Juan nominated for a Juno Award last week, Marie-Ève, whose opening night performance won her rave reviews, must feel like all her sacrifices have paid off.
Congratulations and I wish the entire cast the success they deserve.
View Diane St-Jacques Profile
Lib. (QC)
Mr. Speaker, I would like to commend my colleague, the Minister of State for Financial Institutions, for the emphasis placed on the regions recently.
He has already visited several regions and will continue to do so until next week, as part of the prebudget consultations. Tomorrow, I will be in Bromont with the minister and representatives from my riding of Shefford and representatives from Brome—Missisquoi.
People from all walks of live, all social, economic and community backgrounds, have had and will have the opportunity to express their vision for the future.
The regions are of the utmost importance in ensuring the economic, social and cultural viability of Canada.
Canadians from the regions have shared their priorities for economic and social renewal and, as mentioned in the Speech from the Throne, the Government of Canada will follow through.
View Diane St-Jacques Profile
Lib. (QC)
Mr. Speaker, the department does its utmost to ensure that cheques get to people. I am sure that, once again this year, we will do our utmost to ensure that they receive them prior to the holiday season.
View Diane St-Jacques Profile
Lib. (QC)
Mr. Speaker, I thank the hon. member for his excellent question and especially for referring to the good news we announced this morning.
Despite the problems we have had this year, our market performance has been very good. In October, 65,000 jobs were created and the unemployment rate dropped from 8% to 7.6%. A total of 164,000 jobs have been created in Canada since January and nearly 3 million since 1993.
View Diane St-Jacques Profile
Lib. (QC)
Mr. Speaker, according to international standards, the income level of seniors, already low, is dropping in Canada. We are doing everything possible to reach those who did not receive the guaranteed income supplement.
Members of this House have also taken steps to reach these individuals, and we will continue our efforts until all of these individuals have received this supplement.
View Diane St-Jacques Profile
Lib. (QC)
Madam Speaker, thank you for giving me the opportunity to express my point of view on this bill, which would reduce Canada pension plan benefits paid to recipients between the ages of 60 and 69 whose taxable income is above a certain level.
I am very proud to have a chance to defend this plan that truly manages to offer income support to its contributors and their families, when they retire, become disabled or lose a loved one. I emphasize the term contributor, in other words people who have paid contributions to the plan during their working years.
I must admit that I am surprised at the harshness of this bill. Admittedly, I am not sure what prompted my colleague to present it, especially considering that the level at which benefits would be reduced is very low. For the 2002 taxation year, the reduction would have been applicable to an income as low as $31,677, which is just over $2,600 a month in taxable income.
We are not talking about CEOs of companies, or presidents of multinationals, or people who made a fortune on the stock market. We are talking about Canadians who worked hard, raised their children, and managed to put a little money aside and who have a little extra money to supplement their Canada pension plan benefits. That is precisely what we are asking Canadians to do. We are talking about average workers who, thanks to Canada pension plan benefits, are able to make ends meet.
The problem is not just the category of people targeted by the bill, but also the extent of the reduction of benefits for certain people. It is a question of a 60% reduction of their pension cheque. This bill comes from a member whose party brags about promoting lower taxes.
We also notice several administrative problems that would complicate the implementation of such a measure, for example: using different reduction rates based on age, or using an estimation of the client's income to calculate the reduction of benefits.
Given the fact that income can vary considerably from one year to the next, this last point would make the Canada pension plan impossible to administer.
It would be difficult to calculate a reliable estimate for many Canadians, which means that many people would receive cheques long after the year end, in order to compensate for the excessive reductions that would inevitably occur. However, some clients would have to reimburse overpayments because the estimate of their income was not high enough. It is a not a very happy picture.
And what should we do about clients who live outside Canada and pay taxes in that other place of residence? How could we assess or reduce their benefits?
Moreover, what about the federal-provincial repercussions of this bill? We cannot overlook the fact that the provincial governments coordinate the plan jointly with the federal government. The CPP Act says that two thirds of the provinces and two thirds of the population must accept a change of this kind for it to become law.
And another point: has the sponsor of the bill envisaged that the courts might decide that treating clients differently depending on their age is a form of discrimination, and contrary to the Charter of Rights and Freedoms?
Finally, this bill contravenes the principle of the guarantee on which the CPP is based, that is, that the amount of benefits a person receives depends on the amount of contributions and the length of time that person has contributed.
Passing this bill would undermine the foundations of the Canada pension plan and its agreement with its contributors.
But let us set aside those crucial details for a moment and ask ourselves why the hon. member believes it is necessary to make such drastic changes.
Is it because he believes that the financial health of the CPP is threatened and that we should begin to reduce benefits immediately? If so, he is mistaken, because many actuarial reports have shown that the plan is in good health and that current financial provisions are appropriate to present and future needs.
Or is it because he hopes these measures will encourage people to return to the labour market?
Again, he would be mistaken, since some people receive benefits, but not by choice. No one chooses to become disabled to a point where one can no longer work. No one wants to lose a loved one simply to receive survivor benefits.
For people who choose to retire before age 65, it is obviously unfair to suddenly change the rules and dramatically reduce their CPP benefits on short notice, especially when we know that some have decided to retire at a specific age according to a financial plan that they were encouraged to develop many years earlier.
This bill includes many drawbacks and no clear advantages. That is why I will vote against it and I urge other members to do the same. However, I am well aware that no program is set in stone, and that is also true for the Canada pension plan.
That is why CPP legislation needs to be reviewed by federal and provincial governments every three years. Instead of stripping CPP or reducing benefits in a panic, as this bill would have us do, we should instead continue to administer this plan in a conscientious manner by consulting the people concerned as needed and by maintaining our periodic reviews, because that is the only way to do things properly.
Together, we will ensure that the Canada pension plan is able to provide future generations with the same level of benefits that we enjoy today.
View Diane St-Jacques Profile
Lib. (QC)
Mr. Speaker, we are always very concerned when there are massive layoffs. Naturally, our goal is to help the affected employees re-enter the labour force.
We have introduced major changes to the employment insurance plan in response to the problems that these workers are faced with. Moreover, the small weeks initiative has become a permanent feature in employment insurance, and we recently increased the small week threshold to $225.
View Diane St-Jacques Profile
Lib. (QC)
Mr. Speaker, we waived the waiting period for people infected with SARS in order to support efforts to control the epidemic. Rest assured that the government is aware of the needs of seasonal workers and of whatever difficulties they may be going through.
View Diane St-Jacques Profile
Lib. (QC)
Mr. Speaker, the plan was for these regions to benefit from a three-year transition period to allow people time to adapt to these changes, these new rules.
Now, since we are approaching the end of that period, the minister is in the process of examining the possibilities, and we will be announcing the results very soon.
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