Mr. Speaker, last fall I wrote this government to complain on behalf of poor people, like the homeless who came here last week. They do not want handouts. Most just want the chance for a decent job, which can only come from the private sector now being strangled by high taxes. The minister responded, just as the new budget would make one fear, with a list of government programs.
One of the biggest flaws in programs cooked up by bureaucrats is that they do not work. For example, a couple of women in my riding heard about the budget's increase to the child tax benefit. They called to complain that their daughters received social assistance but have the whole amount of the child tax benefit deducted from their welfare cheques. The poor who need it most will not get a nickel.
The same is true for child support payments after divorce or separation. Fathers have called me to complain that they struggle to provide child support only to see provincial authorities deduct the amount from their wives' cheques.
I hope the lesson to be learned is clear. Not even the poor can rely on programs cooked up by the government.