Madam Speaker, I thank the hon. member opposite for the question. I, too, represent a rural area in Ontario and I think it is very important that we work on behalf of our rural residents along with small town Canada and, indeed, all residents of this great country. I think it is very important.
The government, as members know, inherited an enormous debt and deficit when we took power in 1993. What we had to do in a short period of time was turn that around and make sure that our fiscal House was put in order.
We did that with remarkable speed in the great context of things. I think that speaks volumes about the ability of this government to do the right thing on behalf, not only of provinces, but all Canadians.
I think that is worthy of note. Once that is done, we can start to see where we can proceed in a way that is reasonable, measured and important. That is to start whittling away and reducing that accumulated debt to ensure that we make program reinvestments in a way that make sense not only for those of us here but for all Canadians on their behalf.
We need to start the process of looking at tax reductions in the forms that make sense for Canadians as well. It is important that we, as a federal government, do the right thing on behalf of all Canadians.
I would say that it is very important that the federal government, with its presence across this great land, do the kinds of things that Canadians not only want and need, but deserve.