The Speech From the Throne: Creating Opportunity for Young Canadians

Canadians are worried that our young people are not getting a fair crack at sharing in the new spirit of optimism that is growing from coast to coast in Canada. If our future as a nation is to be secure, the future of our young people must be secure.

We are proud of our record on job creation and economic growth. But it is clear that the level of unemployment among Canadians between the ages of 18 and 25 is just too high.

This is all the more serious when you remember that today's generation of young Canadians is the best educated in our history. And they live in a country that is well- positioned to thrive in the new, knowledge-based economy.

With the nation's finances in good shape, we will soon be in a position to make choices and investments that support this Canadian priority.

In February 1997, we announced the Youth Employment Strategy, which consolidated over $2 billion in new and existing funding for the programs and services that young people need today to acquire skills and work experience, find jobs and build careers.

We are committed to working with our provincial and territorial partners to make further progress. Under the chairmanship of the Prime Minister, the First Ministers and territorial leaders will be working on this issue when they meet this fall.

We have three priorities: to make sure that our young generation makes a successful transition to the world of work; that young people who want to continue to learn have access to education; and that young people who found it difficult getting started in the work place get a second chance.

We welcome the action being taken by the private and voluntary sectors. For instance, we are working with Career Edge and the YMCA on the recently announced Public Service Youth Internship Program.

We also appreciate the contribution of the Corporate Council on Youth in the Economy. We exhort the private sector to do more.

We will do our part to ensure that post-secondary education is accessible and affordable to as many Canadian as possible. We will continue to reduce barriers to post-secondary education through further changes to the Canada Student Loans Program, increased assistance for students with dependents, and new scholarships to encourage excellence and to help low- and moderate-income Canadians attend university or college.

We will work with the business community and the provinces to better forecast the number and types of jobs that will be available in high growth areas of the economy and to develop a plan for ensuring that people are appropriately educated to fill them.

We will increase resources targeted at the three factors that make a big difference to young people getting into the workforce - a good education, a chance at a first job, and a mentor to provide advice and guidance as they establish themselves.

Internship programs have been particularly successful in helping young people get started. These programs will be extended and expanded. Enhanced funding of student summer placements will be continued. And in partnership with provincial governments and the private sector, a Canada-wide mentorship program will be developed.

To help young Canadians with low education and inadequate skills, we will develop and expand community-based programs for youth. These will include establishing Aboriginal youth centres that will provide targeted support, as well as increased work and learning opportunities, for urban Aboriginal youth.

We are also committed to helping individuals, communities and other governments to improve Canadians' capacity to learn throughout their lives.