Indeed, it can be quite a delicate balance. As you pointed out so well in your presentation, this is strictly a provincial jurisdiction. The fact remains that in areas like immigration, where Quebec is the only province to have shared responsibility with the federal government for that jurisdiction, significant funding is transferred. According to some groups, that funding, which is meant to be allocated to programs to help immigrants integrate, vanishes from the consolidated revenue fund. It then becomes very difficult to determine whether or not that money was transferred.
I can tell you that the NDP made its priorities clear when it forced the Paul Martin government to use the $4.5 billion that was supposed to be used to cut taxes for the wealthiest corporations. It transferred $1.5 billion for post-secondary education and similar amounts for other social programs such as social housing and public transportation. That is a reflection of our priorities.
I must tell you that I greatly appreciated the tone of your presentation. It was truly a credit to your professionalism. Your contribution here today provides very important food for thought. I sincerely thank you for your presentation.
I now have a question for Mr. Gaudreault on the environment.
Mr. Gaudreault, you will recall that the Quebec Port Authority tried to prevent people from being critical about the Rabaska project. Can you explain the genesis of that action?