Madam Speaker, the hon. member recently asked my colleague to listen to the answer. I would ask him to do the same. This is my first answer.
I would also like to give him my second answer: I am sure that people want the provinces to be responsible for health care. We heard people everywhere telling us: “The federal government must give back to the provinces the money it took from them”. Because when you attack basic services, you attack something that lies at the heart of people's concerns: their health.
I could also say that, in the human resources development department, several surveys have shown that the provinces were always in the best position to provide social programs. This makes sense because people know what is best for them.
The third element of his question had to do with the Canada social transfer. My colleague from Saint-Hyacinthe—Bagot and I remember the time when we went from the old system to the new system. The government gave us a lump sum, saying “We are giving this to you as a lump sum so you can spend it as you see fit”. What probably happened is that the first referendum was coming.
So, the lump sum was the principle and the contract, and since you have starved the provinces, there can be no going back on what you said at that time. I would add that Quebec lost something in this, because it used to get 34% in welfare transfers. It was not because Quebec was rich; it was because there was a lot of poverty in the province.