The answer is relatively simple, Mr. Speaker. As long as the Canada transfer was being reduced, it could not be restored to its previous level on an equal footing.
We had to wait for the transfer to grow, in conjunction with equalization, before we could do that. And all the provinces save Quebec have asked us to.
The Government of Quebec was the only one to disagree, even though it receives 34% of all federal transfer payments. It should be very pleased that the equalization portion of the transfer keeps growing since it comes with no strings attached.