Mr. Speaker, this begs a lot of questions about Reform policy when it comes to cash transfer payments from the federal government to the provincial and territorial governments for health, education and social services. Looking at the Reform Party's promise in the last election, it was very clear about yes, spending an extra $4 billion a year on health care but in fact cutting $3.5 billion from welfare spending and therefore only promising to add $500 million to the federal social transfers. In other words it was going to restore about 9% of what the Liberals had cut.
Today we are hearing about its promises to cut either totally or in part equalization payments. We have to look at equalization and transfer payments for health, education and social assistance as a package. We are talking about means by which we try to equalize conditions in this country so that everyone regardless of region, regardless of sex and regardless of income has access to quality health care services, to public education and to assistance in times of need.
We have not heard a peep out of the Reform Party about the fact that the CHST really took 40% out of the transfer payment system which put a lot of people into precarious situations and drove more people into poverty. It is not prepared to stand up and talk about transfer payments as a goal to meet the values of this country which stand for equality, dignity and respect for everyone.
My comment is simply to call on the Reform Party to be up front, honest and open about where it stands on this whole issue of transfer payments and to tell us exactly what it means about a universal health care system. What we have to go on is the Reform Party standing up and opposing any attempt to put in place a universal pension system, any kind of a national income retirement system in this country.
On every front when it comes to those programs which reflect the values of Canadians and which have helped shape this country, the Reform Party has backed off and has in fact played a leading role in eroding those programs. We have no confidence and have seen no evidence from the Reform Party about how it will ensure universal health care in this country.
It needs to start by addressing the question of patent protection for multinational drug companies, something on which we have heard nothing but silence. In fact that goes to the very heart of the matter when it comes to ensuring that medicare is on a strong, stable footing.
What is the Reform position on 22 year patent protection for multinational drug companies? What is the Reform position on the deregulation of the health protection branch? Where is Reform's emphasis in terms of a universal health care system and a government that plays a role in terms of ensuring that people are protected from the vagaries of the marketplace and where government plays a role in terms of equalizing conditions from one end of the country to the other?