My colleague says we became more efficient. That is absolutely true and we required them to do the same and they have done so. We have seen efficiencies at all levels of government.
We are not nearly done in those areas. The work of the government after we get the debt reduction plan in place will be to look at tax reduction. We have already effected $7 billion in tax reductions, but there will be more. I hope these are targeted to areas that will boost the economy. I would like to see it in areas where we can see a return on that investment.
The kind of spending opposition parties should be talking about is how can a government spend to effect a return on its investments. We should eliminate the word spend and replace it with the word invest. At that time we can then look toward a return for our young people, so that we have some confidence that our young people will indeed continue to have a health care system with the five pillars that are so important to Canadian health care and that they will continue to have access to education.
We hear the criticism of the millennium fund “Give us the money but stay out of our way; we want to spend it; don't you do it”. This kind of parochial bickering should stop so that we can continue to build what truly is recognized around the world as the greatest country in which to live.