Mr. Speaker, it is not about pouring money into Quebec but about pouring money into railway transportation in Canada, because we believe it is an efficient way to transport passengers and freight.
The hon. member takes the accountant's perspective and talks about viability, but we suppose we look at Canada the same way and ask whether Canada is a viable proposition? Every day our Reform Party colleagues tell us that the debt is increasing and that we are on the verge of bankruptcy, and in that case, since Canada is not viable, why not close it? I say this tongue in cheek, and the hon. member knows perfectly well it is not that simple.
A country is supposed to provide certain public services to its citizens, including education, hospitals, roads and the army, and it has to raise taxes and allow for a minimum of administration, all of which, if considered from a very short-term perspective, could be said to be unprofitable. For instance, is the hospital in Jonquière profitable? I have the impression it costs a lot more than what people pay for the care they get.
So one option would be to privatize. But if we privatize hospitals, schools, roads, the army, prisons, and so forth, we will get to the point that we privatize the government, and there will be no more government, no more country and no more State.
I think we should carefully consider all the consequences. We should also look at history, and we will realize that since time immemorial, public services have been subsidized by the State, and that is why the State exists, so it can provide this public service, and we believe that in Canada, transportation, including highway transportation and railway transportation, which is a part of all this, is also a public service and that citizens, considering the taxes they pay, have a right to expect satisfactory service.