David Charles Dingwall
Liberal
Mr. David Dingwall (Cape Breton-East Richmond):
Mr. Speaker, in light of the recent unemployment statistics it is clear that the plight of unemployed Canadians is no better since the Government promise to create "jobs, jobs, jobs". Indeed, there are 167,000 more Canadians out of work now than there were last month.
Atlantic Canadians were hit with the news from the Atlantic Provinces Economic Council that the growth of the Atlantic economy will slow down this year and that unemployment levels will remain rather frightening. In addition to this distressing news, we are advised by Statistics Canada that the number of full time jobs fell by 48,000; employment declined by an estimated 6,000 in Newfoundland, by 4,000 in Nova Scotia, and by 11,000 in Alberta; 23,000 jobs were lost in the construction industry, and 26,000 jobs were lost in the trade sector.
A glance at the unemployment rates for some of our major cities shows devastating increases; St. John's, Newfoundland 17.1; Sudbury, Ontario, 16.5; Hamilton, Ontario, 10.4; and, yes, Mr. Speaker, in my own riding, the town of Glace Bay, it is in excess of 55 per cent. I would urge the Government, Mr. Speaker, to take its responsibilities seriously and put into effect job-creation programs now which will affect and assist the unemployed in creating meaningful jobs.
Subtopic: LABOUR CONDITIONS
Sub-subtopic: UNEMPLOYMENT LEVELS