Mr. Speaker, I would like to make a comment followed by a question.
During the election campaign, we heard at every turn that job creation would be the number-one priority of a Liberal government. Now that we have a Liberal government, this should be reflected in the budget. Furthermore, the Liberals have often spoken of the infrastructure program announced since the election as the key element of their job creation plans.
My question to the hon. member is this: How does he explain the fact that, despite this much-praised program, the unemployment rate forecast for next year will only go down by one tenth of 1 per cent. The rate will be reduced from 11.8 per cent to 11.7 per cent, if I am not mistaken. In any case, it will only go down by one tenth of 1 per cent, with an infrastructure program in which a lot of money will be invested. Why did we not get something else to raise the employment level after being told "jobs, jobs, jobs" during the election campaign? Is he satisfied with the unemployment rate going down by only one tenth of 1 per cent, and how does he explain this in the Liberal government's budget?