Mr. Speaker, it does not add to something which is totally false, it simply reinforces the reality of the situation.
The budget brought forward by the Reform Party stated a goal, an objective of where it wanted to be economically. Then it listed a number of fiscal measures that should be undertaken. There was a funny thing about that. When we add up the specific measures it suggested and compared them with the goal it was trying to reach, the two did not match.
There was a big pool of cuts that needed to be made which it was not willing to make clear. There were big cuts the Canadian people were to be asked to undertake but they were not spelled out. It did not tell Canadians the specifics of what they would be. That is the reality of the Reform budget.
It was calling for all of these cuts and these things to happen, but it was not willing to put in writing each and every cut that would have to be made to reach the target it wanted to achieve.
Quite frankly, the Liberal government and the finance minister through his three budgets have shown a path to the Canadian people by which we can reach good fiscal management, substantially reduce the deficit and do it in a way that is paced in an appropriate manner and in a way that combines the two responsibilities I talked about earlier, the fiscal responsibility the government has and its social responsibility.
I think the reaction of Canadians to the budget of the Minister of Finance shows we are on the right course which will bring sound fiscal management to the country in a way the Canadian people think is appropriate.