Mr. Speaker, we are headed from a $17 billion deficit to a $4 billion surplus.
This means that the government could have balanced the budget this year even if it had not cut transfers to the provinces by $3 billion in 1997-98.
My question is for the Prime Minister. Does he not understand that the only fair thing to do is to put the surplus back where it came from, in provincial coffers to be used for health, education and social services, and in the pockets of taxpayers, who are being taxed to death?