Mr. Speaker, having your presentation interrupted by question period is somewhat like having a couple of rounds of WWF during a tennis match, but I will try to carry on.
Large debt burdens also reduce the levels of job creating and investment in plants, machinery and equipment. The massive iceberg of a debt that government seemingly refuses to address has exposed Canadians to higher taxes, making investors nervous.
This government owes it to Canadians to change the course of financial administration in this country and to heed the warning calls that have been sounded.
Young generations of Canadians have recently realized that they cannot trust the government to pay back their CPP contributions when they retire in the next millennium.
The government's financial record is simply atrocious. For years and years government was entrusted with safeguarding and wisely investing the Canada pension plan funds. The track record is very embarrassing. The government now owes almost $4 billion to the CPP and a whopping $114 billion to public sector pension plans.
Again, think of the government as the CEO of our nation. In the private sector, its track record would never be tolerated. Shareholders would be hollering from the rooftops for a change. Canadians need to hold their government to the same degree of competence. Shareholders in a company would not be approving spending increases if the company still carried a multibillion dollar debt load.
To conclude, I come back to my original analogy of the Titanic government approaching the ever increasing iceberg debt. Knowing now how the plotted course of action will hurt our nation's economy, it would be indignant of this government to keep spending full steam ahead, leaving already overburdened Canadians to pick up the pieces and carry the worry of such a huge debt on their backs.
The responsible thing to do is to change our course of action. Ignoring the debt will be as irresponsible as ignoring the warnings of the looming iceberg was to the Titanic .
I urge the government to stop playing Russian roulette with our nation's finances.