Mr. Minister, going into the last economic downturn, the government was sleepwalking into a recession. It insisted that all was fine and that we were going to have balanced budgets. We ended up with the largest deficit in our history, a deficit of $54 billion. What we need is, in fact, a counter-cyclical measure and approach right now that takes advantage of low interest rates and helps make our economy more competitive.
Why wouldn't we take advantage of low interest rates, put Canadians to work, upgrade our infrastructure in urban transit, get clean water into all first nations communities, or create a national broadband structure? Why wouldn't we do that now to put Canadians to work and counter the softening economy that we're facing around the world?