Mr. Speaker, that is part of the problem here. The government always thinks that more government is the answer and the solution. Too often we find that it is actually government that is the problem. It thinks that by expanding it and making it bigger somehow it is going to make the problem go away. Often we find that more government involvement makes the problem bigger rather than smaller.
My colleague raises a very good point. What if a very competent mint master moves aside and somebody else comes into play?
The government and the taxpayers then stand up and proudly beat their chest and say that this is an entirely profitable venture, for who better to loan money to than the mint, the one making the money. I guess there is not a much better loan than that. One cannot have more security on one's assets than from the people who actually produce the money themselves.
However, that is based on the current mint master. If that person moves along and somebody else who is not as competent takes over that administration then the taxpayers are the ones who are left holding the bag for any problems or mishaps.
It wants to go ahead and create this system that will shove out and hurt a private sector competitor. I remember the talks we had over hepatitis C and tainted blood and whether the government should be able to, in a sense, operate in monopolies like this. When the government does things like that, ultimately the culpability, the responsibility, falls entirely on it.
Private sector competitors have the ability to operate in the marketplace but if there are problems with the marketplace it is not entirely the government's fault, for there are other players in the field. However, if it is the only player in the field then it is the government that is entirely culpable and responsible for what goes wrong.
I do not think the government wants that responsibility but today in this bill it is going to grab for it.