Mr. Speaker, I really have no reason to criticize what the provincial government does. However, I can tell you that he does so because he has no choice: it is because of the $4.5 billion in cuts by the federal government. Politics is easy here in the federal government. One year the government makes huge cuts, slashing transfer payments to the provinces. The next year, it brags about reducing the deficit and eliminating it within three years. That is pretty easy to do.
In the end, it just means eliminating one cheque. They call Quebec and say it will not have the $4.5 billion anymore. They shift the problem to another level of government. The Government of Quebec has a problem: it is not getting as much money as it expected. The Government of Quebec, which is closer to the people, has then to find solutions. So, when they have you by the throat up to here, you have no choice.
I have no comment on the measures Quebec has taken, but, what does offend me is when the Liberal government boasts about reducing the deficit, when it did so on the backs of the provinces.
It is easy being a federal government.