Mr. Speaker, naturally all of us want to see restoration of previous funding in the areas of environment and agriculture. At the same time, we face realities. We have had to cut substantially in government expenses. When government expenses, the deficit, are cut by 57 per cent over three years, the cutbacks are significant.
The budget sets a sense of direction. One government priority is innovation, research. It has earmarked the research foundation for the next five years even though it is subject to partnership with private enterprise, with the economic world so that hopefully it will produce $2 billion over five years.
Naturally, when finances are restored to the government, I hope there will be much more funding for the environment, whether it is in the form of the previous green plan which was criticized as being too unfocused. We need something focused, something that addresses the issue of scientific research in the environment especially. Yes, I would be all for this. The Minister of Finance shares this goal as well.