Mr. Speaker, I would like to ask the member what she thinks of the fact that her government decided in the budget to put all its eggs in one basket.
By the year 2000, there will be a surplus of $25 billion in the employment insurance fund. Is it reasonable for the government to use this fund as one of its primary sources of income to the detriment of the objectives of the employment insurance plan?
Is this not risky? If we have an economic recession, fewer people will have a job, which means less money will go into the fund. Do you not think that the government and the Minister of Finance could put us in the same situation as the one we experienced before 1993, when the provinces and the unemployed were forced to make a major contribution to the fight against the deficit, which led us to the current situation?
Why create a $25 billion surplus in a fund, when those who are supposed to benefit from the program do not enjoy acceptable benefits?