Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present the first report of the Standing Committee on Public Accounts. According to the committee, discussions on the debt and the deficits should not happen only during prebudget consultations but should be an ongoing process. The committee suggests that all members of Parliament use, among other things, the indicators proposed in this report to explain more readily to their constituents Canada's financial and economic situation.
The report tabled today reflects the basic consensus of the committee and the dissenting opinion of the members for Joliette and Chicoutimi concerning the addition to the report of a series of prospective economic indicators.
Pursuant to Standing Order 109 of the House of Commons, the committee is asking the government to table a comprehensive response to the report.