Mr. Speaker, we did not drop the Green Plan. In fact, we built on what the previous government left behind. Unfortunately, under the previous government, 60 per cent of the environment budget was sunsetting funding, to expire after five years in the case of the Green Plan and the St. Lawrence action plan.
Thanks to the Minister of Finance, instead of having 60 per cent of its project funding at risk, Environment Canada's budget consists totally of long term and secured projects.
In the case of the St. Lawrence action plan, for instance, we no longer have to go back to cabinet for additional funding, since the project is 100 per cent funded through the annual budget. And the Green Plan, which was about to expire and was cut three or four times by the previous government, will no longer be subject to the political whims of the day.