Thank you, Mr. Chairperson.
First I want to thank John McCallum for reminding us why we're here--that is, the Conservatives are just trying to emulate the Liberals every chance they get. It's increasingly hard to tell the difference. I also think it's worth while to try to put this in context.
When did this whole area get opened up by the Liberals? If I'm not mistaken, it was in 1995. Nobody knows why exactly, except that Paul Martin was Minister of Finance at the time and decided it would be important to give some business to the private sector that wasn't otherwise in their hands. I think Genworth was the lucky recipient. Maybe the question that should be asked today is what do Paul Martin and Peter Vukanovich have in common?
I'm interested in this whole question of how this is going to open up competition. I'm surprised that Yvon Loubier is getting caught up in this as well. If we all look back and see what has happened in areas where deregulation has occurred, and how consumers were going to benefit from all this competition, I don't think we have to look any further than Air Canada. If anyone can tell me how we're better off today with all this competition, please let me know. We're now down to no meals and very poor service, in many cases. I'm just not sure what the benefits are on that front.
I'd like all of you to explain to me what's going to happen to consumers who are at the low end of the income scale to begin with, because we're looking at those who don't have the down payments and need mortgage insurance. I haven't heard of any study that says there is some problem with thousands and thousands of Canadians not being able to access mortgage insurance. I haven't heard people say this is too expensive and out of reach.
I need to hear what studies exist that show that consumers are not being served now. I'd like to know from each one of you--all of those people who want a piece of the pie--how much cheaper you're going to offer mortgage insurance than is the case now, and who you're going to cover who isn't covered now.