Mr. Speaker, I rise today on behalf of the constituents of Okanagan-Similkameen-Merritt to salute the residents of Salmo, British Columbia. These fine Canadians have decided to take action on the national debt. They have to because the Liberals have done nothing to reduce it, in fact they are increasing it.
The people of Salmo are collecting pennies to send to the debt reduction fund. While these good Canadians are scraping the bottom of the barrel, desk drawers and every nook and cranny, the Grits continue their spending binge.
The Canada Council handed out $88 million in grants last year. One of the latest handouts is $10,000 for a gay and lesbian film festival to be staged in Saskatoon this weekend by the Positively Queer group.
My heart goes out to the residents of Salmo. What will they do when they realize that they will have to collect one million pennies to pay for the Liberal government's financial support of the Positively Queer film festival? That is almost three tonnes of pennies. The Liberals should be ashamed.