Mr. Speaker, if it were possible to decentralize Canada it would be very interesting. I do not believe it is possible to decentralize the federal government because it is part of the federal history to centralize power. That has been the case ever since the second world war. The federal government has taken more and more power. It has assumed more and more of the provincial jurisdiction.
Today the situation is catastrophic in the sense that the federal government has no place being there any more. It is a useless political institution in the broadest terms. It is a wasteful institution.
Now its role is basically to maintain itself, to keep itself alive. It is like this absurd institution that suddenly finds itself alive and now will do everything to maintain its life in spite of the fact it is taxing provinces and creating problems all over the country.
We can criticize this system inside and out completely. It is wasteful, it is not economical, it gives no guidance to the country. Its primary goal right today is to do everything to maintain its life. This is what the government is doing. It is trying to maintain the operation of this federal institution in Ottawa in spite of the fact it is a totally useless institution.