Madam Speaker, this is a very important debate. It has transfixed the Canadian public since the previous Conservative prime minister, without consultation with the Canadian public, brought in the tax and barrelled it through the
House of Commons. Clearly there are many of us on this side who understand the veracity of opinion with respect to this tax.
As the hon. member opposite selectively quotes, I remember quite clearly in the red book and during the election campaign we as a party in waiting, one that was soon to have been given the trust of the Canadian public, made it extremely and exceptionally clear what our platform was.
Rather than having to wait until opposition members with selective memories misquoted us, we put down in writing, in black and white, what our policies were.
With respect to the GST we had said in opposition that it was the wrong tax at the wrong time. At that point it was the wrong tax, it was the wrong time and it aided and abetted in the deepening of a recession caused by the previous government's misguided economic policies.
At the time of the election it was very clear to us that we would be faced with an enormous task to try to balance the books, to try to put our fiscal house in order. What we said at the time in the red book, in black and white, is that this government would get rid of the GST and that we would replace it with a taxation system which was easier to administer, fairer to small businesses and which took in the same amount of revenue.
I know my hon. colleague from the Reform Party is an avid reader. He quotes the red book often. It is one of his favourite pieces of reading material.
Would his party support today the abolition of the GST if it knew it would lead to a $17 billion increase in the deficit? If not, would he specifically tell us which programs would be cut which would amount to that $17 billion? Which social programs would be laid to waste? Which transfer programs would he and his party cancel? What would be the impact of those program cancellations be to, for instance, the people of Labrador who are in the middle of an election campaign and who are wondering which party better represents the future for the people of that riding?