Mr. Speaker, the C. D. Howe Institute put it bluntly when it said that the 3 per cent of GDP deficit reduction target signalled the lack of urgency. Many question whether the government will seize the opportunity to get its financial house in order at all.
C. D. Howe, the Globe and Mail , the Financial Post and other commentators speak for a growing contingent that criticize the finance minister for not moving decisively toward the goal of a zero deficit.
The economic growth which Canada temporarily enjoys affords the government a great opportunity to put its fiscal house in order. I ask the finance minister: Will the government abandon its timid deficit reduction target of 3 per cent of GDP in favour of the more ambitious target of eliminating the deficit by the end of its current term in office?