At the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, we do not buy into the concept of redistribution of wealth as something that is a public good. We believe that wealth is earned and that taxes are levied to provide public services to the public, so any element of redistribution of wealth is not going to be something that meets with our support. We would even argue that in a place like British Columbia, the HST was voted down because it had this element of redistribution of wealth in it that was excessive.
With regard to the whole question of the federal excise tax on gasoline and the transportation strategy, I think there's a historic opportunity here for the opposition and the government to get together. Both the government and the official opposition support the notion of Quebec's jurisdiction in this area. I think it's not too big a stretch to extend that notion to the jurisdiction of the great provinces of Ontario and Alberta and every other province, and to the idea of the government's just getting out of levying excise tax and giving that space to the provinces.
Also, rather than just proposing that others come together and work on a strategy, I think a strategy that encourages governments to price the service they're providing.... In British Columbia, the Port Mann Bridge is going to be a $3.3-billion improvement. It's the same deal with the Champlain Bridge in Montreal; it's a multi-billion-dollar expenditure.
If you go on the 401 in Toronto, it's plugged 24-7.
These are multi-billion dollar transportation investments that aren't priced at all. They're treated as free goods, so people build big houses with two-car garages at either end of them and plug them up. It's a disaster. It's an economic disaster for everyone.
As for the idea that we can sit here in Ottawa and strategize on how to unplug the city of Toronto better than they can do it themselves on the ground, I don't think that idea holds water.