Madam Speaker, in 1993 when we first came to this Parliament, I remember the statement on several occasions that there were somewhere in the neighbourhood of one million children in this country living in poverty and suffering.
In 1994 I heard the same thing. In 1995, 1996, 1997 and now in 1998 I still hear the same thing. Over one million children are living in poverty in this land and we need to address that. I know that the children aid societies in most of the cities that are trying so desperately to take care of so many people are struggling in terms of dollars and cents. We have not seemed to have gained anywhere because of the million children figure we keep hearing about continues to exist each and every year.
The education the member was talking about is good to hear and the opportunity to expand on that is great. But right now I am referring to young people, young children and families across this land who do not know for sure where their next meal is going to come from, who do not have proper clothing to wear in some of the wicked winter months that come through. There is genuine suffering going on and yet each year nothing seems to change.
We find millions and millions of dollars to give away for free flags which is a nice thing to do, nobody would deny that, but surely $25 million for flags would have fed a lot of hungry kids. There are kids out there who need dental work and they cannot get it done. Nobody can afford it, yet convicts in our penitentiaries eat three square meals a day, they are very comfortable at night in terms of getting out of the weather. A dentist visits the institution and takes care of their teeth. They are getting better treatment than our young people out there in that million who are starving.
This budget does not do anything to address that, nor any budget in the past since I have been here. I would like to know why. I would like the member to answer that.
Second, I would like to know why, by the auditor general's reports and everything through Indian affairs, for every dollar funnelled in at the top here only about 20 cents reaches the reserve where it is mostly needed. In the Stony reserve where I have toured around many times, there are people suffering and I would like to know why these budgets do not address those very basic needs. The education and the at risk programs I understand. That is all good. Nobody denies that. But what about the very basics?