Mr. Speaker, to say that a committee has the right to express its views does not prove anything. After all, in a democracy we have the right to be wrong. It is not a sin.
We know the government is wrong, but we are asking whether it could act responsibly to do something. Because as far as important issues go, it is no accident that all editorial writers, at least those in the French newspapers, are saying this does not make sense.
The former auditor general says it does not make sense, and the current auditor general says so too. The consensus is growing. And of course we agree. "On a minor point", the Minister of Finance says. Actually, on May 9 this year he said:
-we certainly said clearly when we came to office that there were weaknesses in the taxation system that needed to be corrected. We have supported the actions of the auditor general in this area and will continue to do so.
That is what we are asking the government to do. What we are asking is this: Once again, whose interests are they protecting by not responding to the judgment made by the auditor general? They say it is only a minor point, but we think they disagree on the main point made in the auditor general's report.