Mr. Speaker, this statement is inspired by the passionate and entirely justified complaint of Bruno Epp of Calgary.
Bruno, along with thousands and thousands of other Albertans, is fed up with decades of federal tax unfairness that has resulted in the following inequity. From 1961 to 1992 Albertans per capita and per year paid out over $2,000 more tax to the federal government than they received in services. The only other province whose citizens got less than they paid was Ontario.
This trend will only worsen now that the finance minister decided in his last budget to disproportionately punish Alberta for its fiscal responsibility. There is a basic injustice here that is not being ignored in Alberta.
Why should the citizens of one province pay out for three decades running billions more than they received? The country has taken Alberta for granted. Bruno Epp and thousands of other Albertans want Ottawa to know they have had enough.