Wednesday, November 19, 2014
Social Development
Mr.
Speaker, on Tuesday the chair of the Social Security Tribunal confirmed
that there are significant delays in the processing of cases: 14,677
cases are languishing on her desk.
At
this rate it will take 11 years to clear the backlog just for the
income security section. That is shameful. For over a year, Ms. Brazeau
has been in regular contact with the minister about the lack of staff at
the tribunal, but the minister is asleep at the switch.
How can the minister allow such an administrative nightmare?
Mr.
Speaker, thanks to my department's efficiency, we have seen a 90%
decrease in employment insurance appeals. That means that almost 90% of
cases are handled by public servants, without appeal. The service is
quicker.
In
the case of Quebeckers, the Government of Quebec has its own appeal
process for benefits paid by the Quebec pension plan, which does not
fall under the Social Security Tribunal.
[English]
Mr.
Speaker, yesterday, the chair of the Social Security Tribunal told the
human resources committee that she had been in continuous contact with
the minister regarding the backlog. Yet, for 18 months now, that backlog
has continued to grow, while the tribunal has been understaffed and
working without performance standards. More than 14,600 Canadians are
now waiting for a hearing.
Why did the minister not take action sooner to address the enormous mess at the Social Security Tribunal?
Mr.
Speaker, again, in fact our ministry did take action by introducing a
new approach toward reconsideration of EI refusals. That now happens
quickly, by a public servant who, remarkably, actually picks up a phone
and calls the person who has asked for a reconsideration, and sorts it
out, often getting additional documentation.
This
means that we are now resolving about 90% of those refusals at a
reconsideration stage in a matter of weeks, without having to go through
a lengthy multi-month quasi-judicial process.
In
terms of the CPP cases before the tribunal, we are adding additional
decision makers and taking other administrative measures to speed up the
process.
Mr. Speaker, behind every one of those numbers is a person who needs to put food on the table and pay the bills.
People
cannot wait years for the government to get its act together. Nearly
10,000 Canadians still waiting for an appeal are living with a
disability. In many cases the uncertainty and stress of financial
insecurity makes their medical conditions worse.
Will the minister commit to eliminate the backlog and finally give these Canadians the justice they need and deserve?
Yes,
I will, Mr. Speaker. That is, in part, why we have legislation before
the House in the budget implementation act, which we hope the NDP will
support. This would allow us to hire up to an additional 22 decision
makers at the tribunal.
I
am very pleased to highlight that the faster informal reconsideration
process for refused EI applications means a 90% reduction in the
caseload for EI, meaning we can reallocate those decision makers over to
the income security division. This means we will get at that backlog of
cases so we can provide the kind of service that Canadians expect and
deserve.
Source: http://www.parl.gc.ca/HousePublications/Publication.aspx?Language=E&Mode=1&Parl=41&Ses=2&DocId=6781650#Int-8510994
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