Madam Speaker, talking about taking a lesson from history, I wonder how the hon. member's party would have existed in the early stages of our history when the government actually had to finance Canadian Pacific to build a railway across the country to link the country together to create the nation we live in today. It seems, if we had had a Reform Party representing the people out west, they would not have been part of Confederation in the first place. Incidentally that was a perfect example of the government getting a business going, turning it over to private hands and turning it into a success story.
All I hear from the Reform Party is about failures. Certainly every time we get involved in a business venture there is the possibility of risk, the possibility of failure.
I also want to focus on another aspect of regional development. In some of these areas the federal government through a process of transfer payments or whatever is sustaining people. We have people on welfare and on unemployment insurance.
I would like to direct a question to the Reform Party. If we have a choice between paying people to sit home and do nothing or trying to create worthwhile jobs and careers for people to get out of that situation, which is more preferable?