Mr. Speaker, I was not saying that the motion would be better if it asked for a federal response. I was saying that when I asked the member a question about the deadline, he talked about a federal response instead of talking about the language that is actually in the motion, which is to conclude an agreement. I was not asking for a federal response; it was the member himself in responding to my question.
The modified opt out clause is not good enough for us when it comes to medicare. We entertain no notion by which it would be possible for provinces to opt out of medicare. We can see the possibility for new programs, et cetera, but we consider medicare to be beyond reproach and beyond the reach of any new arrangements with respect to the social union.
We would like to see the federal government do what we think it should do, which is to re-establish its credibility and its moral authority in this area by putting back at least $2.5 billion into the federal transfers and not the piddling $1 billion that may be called for by the finance committee. This is something that the government should do if it wants to bargain in good faith and show Canadians that it really means it when it talks about—