QUESTION PERIOD — Employment and Social Development
Rate of Unemployment
September 17, 2024
My question is for the Leader of the Government in the Senate.
In the month of August, 44,000 Canadians lost their full-time jobs. Other than during the pandemic, Canada has not seen such a high unemployment rate since May 2017. In the meantime, the unemployment rate in the United States is going down. It is harder than ever for young Canadians to find work. The unemployment rate for students returning to classes is 16.7%. Excluding the pandemic, that is the highest unemployment rate for the summer months since 2022.
The Liberals’ economic policies have failed. In August, the Prime Minister held his annual caucus retreat in Vancouver. Who did he blame for this disaster?
Thank you for your question and for pointing out the challenges related to Canada’s unemployment rate. With all due respect, esteemed colleague, it is not true the that federal government is solely responsible for the highs and lows in the unemployment rate. The seasons play a role. When it comes to the Government of Canada’s fiscal and monetary policies, at the macroeconomic level, the inflation rate has continued to fall and is now at 2%, as our colleague recently pointed out. We hope that interest rates will continue to drop, which will help to improve our economic situation.
Leader, Canadians’ paycheques are getting smaller. Statistics Canada recently indicated that the GDP per capita has dropped for the fifth consecutive quarter, falling by 3.6% since 2022.
Economist Trevor Tombe said, and I quote, “If Canada had simply kept pace with the U.S. over the past two years, our economy would be 8.5 percent larger.”
Will the Prime Minister take responsibility for this and step down?
The government will continue to work hard to do its best to improve the standard of living for all Canadians.
