September 15, 2009
Cullen: NDP will study proposed EI changes
Gordon Hoekstra
Prince George Citizen
Page 1
The Conservative government says it will introduce Employment Insurance changes that will extend unemployment benefits to long-term workers up to 20 weeks, a move that could benefit sawmill workers in this area.
The move is also viewed as a measure to prevent a fall election, or at the least, one that would give the impression the Conservatives don’t want to go to the polls.
The New Democrats, who had been advocating similar EI change, say they will examine the proposal in detail.
However, they will make a decision on whether to support the Conservatives on a wider array of issues.
Skeena-Bulkley Valley NDP MP Nathan Cullen said Monday his party will be going over the proposal with a fine-toothed comb.
“I think it’s our job to try to make Parliament work. And if we can get a sincere effort on (Employment) Insurance then it’s a step in the right direction,” said Cullen, whose riding extends from Prince Rupert to Fort St. James.
He noted that the forestry and fishing sectors in his riding are hurting in a “deep and fundamental way.”
In the past two years, there have been more than 3,500 job losses in the forest sector in northern B.C.
Mills have been shut down in Terrace, Fort St. James, Mackenzie, Chetwynd, Fort Nelson, Quesnel and Prince George. More layoffs have come through shift reductions and reduced work weeks.
The New Democrats do not appear to be willing to say for certain if this will mean they will not consider helping to bring down Stephen Harper’s minority Conservative government. “It’s clear that we need to see a change in heart from this government, one willing to work with opposition parties,” stressed Cullen.
“If that’s sincere, we’ll respond in kind. But if it’s just a one-off – them trying to avoid a bullet – then that’s not going to work,” he said.
The Conservatives have accused the opposition parties of readying themselves to bring down the minority government. The opposition parties, in turn, have accused the Conservatives of not making enough effort to work with them to govern the country, possibly forcing them to bring down the government.
The opposition parties and the Conservatives say the public doesn’t want another election – it would be the fourth election in five years – but accuse each other of precipitating one.
Cariboo-Prince George Conservative MP Dick Harris sidestepped the question of whether the new EI changes were meant to stave off an election, stressing instead that all the opposition leaders are bent on bringing down the minority Conservative government. The support of all three opposition parties is needed to bring down the government.
“From our point of view, we’ll keep fighting the recession, and if they want to keep fighting recovery, then that’s up to them,” said Harris, who won his sixth election in Prince George last October.
The legislation would be temporary – aimed at addressing the current economic difficulty. The Conservatives say the measures would cost $900 million.
United Steelworkers local 1-424 president Frank Everitt reacted cautiously to the news of the EI extension, which would be important to Steelworkers members, thousands of who have been laid off in B.C., including in the Northern Interior. “The proof will be in the pudding on Wednesday when the actual legislation gets on the house floor,” said Everitt.
