Madam Speaker, when we are discussing equalization payments, what we are trying to do is establish a level playing field for Canadians no matter where they happen to live in the country.
One of the critical areas as we enter the knowledge based economy of the 21st century is access to education.
Does my hon. friend share the view that perhaps it is time to be bold when it comes to funding education and eliminate tuition fees? Tuition fees across the country come to about $3 billion. We have a surplus of between $10 billion and $15 billion. If the Minister of Finance wished, we could actually eliminate all tuition fees from post-secondary institutions like most of the other OECD countries did long ago. Would the member support this notion?