Mr. Speaker, the hon. member ought not to confuse annual surpluses and cumulative surpluses.
To give an example, in 1993 when we became the government, the cumulative deficit of the unemployment insurance fund was $6 billion. In 1994, there was an annual surplus of $2.3 billion, which brought the cumulative deficit to $3.6 billion. In 1995, the annual surplus was approximately five billion dollars. This is the five billion the hon. member is referring to.
It will bring the cumulative surplus to only $1.4 billion. The two things must not be confused. We now have a surplus, not of $5 billion, but of $1.4 billion.
Our goal was not to reduce the deficit but to bolster the U.I. fund, which we have done, being good managers.