There are some things which cost the federal government much more money. God knows that we are not facing a financial crisis, unless the government is hiding something we don't know about. The current government came to power when there was such a huge surplus that it did not know what to do with it; money was spilling out from everywhere. When the time came, it made cutbacks. But it was not as if there were no money. Even in the toughest times, the program remained. It costs peanuts to defend the rights of linguistic communities. That's a reality the government has not understood.
Ms. Lalonde, you said something at the beginning of your testimony. I have also heard the same thing elsewhere. You were told not to engage in politics. Before you appeared before the committee, did anyone warn you not to engage in politics? When someone says something like this, it's because they think something has happened.
What do you have to say about that, Ms. Lalonde?