We've had a costing done on this. It is linked to the jurisdictional issue that's been brought up a couple of times, on who does what. Given the current environment.... The federal government has identified that it will continue to play a role in transfers to individuals. We think that persons with severe disabilities are a deserving group for a federal transfer. The way to begin to build that is by making the disability tax credit refundable and using that as the first step in a strategy that would bring up to the federal level about 500,000 people with severe disabilities who are currently spending their entire lives on welfare and social assistance at the provincial level. We know the stigma that is associated with social assistance. It was designed as a short-term, temporary program. People are now spending decades on it and living in terrible circumstances of poverty.
That would cost the federal government $1.1 billion, and we're not suggesting it can all be done at once but over a phase-in. That would free up sufficient dollars at the provincial and territorial level--we had an external consultant prepare a study for us--that would virtually guarantee Canadians with the disability-related supports they need to participate in employment. You would then have people who have severe disabilities and are currently on social assistance having their income needs taken care of by the federal government and the vast majority being able to begin to participate in the labour market. That's going to be savings all the way around.