Mr. Speaker, I think the member just pointed out the classic difference. The Leader of the Opposition pointed out that this government is taxing billions of dollars out of the pockets of people who are defined as poor and below the poverty line. We just heard the example of how the government takes millions of dollars away and turns around and gives it back to them, saying it is doing a great job. That cannot be.
We could improve the efficiency of the government by not collecting the taxes from these people. Why would we collect taxes from the poor and the people who are below the poverty line just so we can channel it through the government and give it back to them in the form of a cheque? This is absolutely ludicrous.
Surely the member would agree that to leave the taxes in their own pockets and not take it away is a far greater incentive than to come out with a myriad of programs with all the rules and regulations that force people into complexities of following government rules and perhaps having to give up a job in order to qualify for a benefit.
Why does the government not leave the money with the people? Why does it not let them prosper and stand on their own two feet and get on with being a real Canadian with a real job? That is what it is all about. It is not government.