Thirty-one billion dollars yearly. It is our money, after all. This is where we realize that the money we send to Ottawa does not serve our best interests. Because, if we kept this $31 billion at the national assembly—and this is one aspect of sovereignty, as we know, sovereignty being defined as the ability to keep our taxes and to decide our own foreign policy and to have one government—not all of it, but a very large part of it would be established as transfer payments.
On the subject of radiation oncology, it is important, because it is related to cancer. In the case of radiation oncology—I would ask the member for Québec not to leave; I am not done—the need increases dramatically, particularly in the case of people over 50.
If I were to ask in the House which of my colleagues were baby boomers, there would be a lot of people casting shadows. There are a lot of baby boomers, that is people between the ages of 46 and 66. The hon. member here is one, and our colleague could manage it if we gave him a chance. What I am saying is that new cases of cancer increase annually by 3%. This is important and it is not surprising; the baby boomers are reaching an age where they will be looking for this type of service.
Radiation oncology requires millions and even billions of dollars in investment.
I want to say as an aside that I will be visiting all the hospitals in Montreal during the week's break we are about to take. I will meet some 20 organizations to make sure we are all in tune, those of us representing Quebecers in this House, and that we will come up with a very specific set of claims. I will propose to my caucus a plan for a tour in April or May.
Cardiology is not a simple matter either. People's needs increase after the age of 50. There are more bypasses among older people. I can mention some eloquent figures: over the past 10 years, there has been a 3.6% annual increase in heart surgery—this is very important, and we all know people who are concerned by this—there has been a 260% increase in balloon angioplasty.
I take this opportunity to salute our colleague, the Bloc Quebecois House leader, and wish him a speedy recovery. We know that he is listening to us, and we miss him. He works very hard with us and he follows our proceedings from a distance. He also shares our indignation about this government, and I offer him, on behalf of this House, our best wishes for a full recovery.
On either side of humanity, the situation is not any less acceptable. In other specialities, a longer life expectancy and a higher number of seniors increase current needs and create new ones. There is a type of medicine—and I know this very technical aspect will be of great interest to my colleagues—that has been developed in recent years, in connection with orthopedics.
Orthopedics concerns those who have problems with their hips, articulations, etc. I know there are many members of this House who have problems articulating, but this is not what I am referring to. I am talking about those who have problems with their legs or their hips. In a society with an increasing number of seniors and older seniors, a medical specialty developed, for which training is necessary.
I will say it again. When there is a demand, as there is from the NDP—the Progressive Conservatives will, I think, support the motion, as will the Bloc Quebecois, and I hope the Liberals will wake up in time—when there is a demand that transfer payments be restored to their previous level, it is because large amounts of money are needed to keep the health care system running.
Let us consider what Mrs. Marois said. She said that the Martin budget offered $2.5 billion over four years—is this not ridiculous, and I hope the parliamentary secretary is paying attention—when, at the premiers' conference, Quebec alone said that it needed $1 billion a year. The provinces are being offered $2.5 billion over four years. Is this not a far cry from what the premiers said they needed? They have three reasons for demanding that transfer payments be restored: obviously, they need enough money to run the system. Pauline Marois reminded us that Quebec's share of this $2.5 billion would cover the cost of running the system for only three days a week.
Another reason they are demanding this money is because they have to buy new equipment. Gone are the days when it was possible to buy specialized medical equipment for a few thousand dollars.
Millions of dollars in investment are required. This is also necessary because of the new types of care being developed. There are new health-related problems that require funding.
I would like to express one wish in closing. I believe we can work together in this House, as we have in some other areas, shipbuilding for one. My colleague has shown us it is possible not to be partisan, whether we are Liberals, Conservative, Bloc Quebecois, Reform or NDP. I believe that the government is going to find an extraordinary path of co-operation if it wishes to restore the transfer payments.
I am calling upon it to do so, in the name of our seniors, of those in hospital, the staff of the CLSCs, and all those who keep the system running but are running out of steam, and not because the Government of Quebec has not done its part. I have here a list of the investments by the Government of Quebec in the past few years. It has done a great deal, considering the means available to it.
The Government of Quebec can be counted on to do its utmost, and I am sure that the next budget by Minister Landry will focus on health. But we will not be able to face up to the challenges to our social and health systems if the federal government does not put its shoulder to the wheel.
This is not a partisan issue. The Bloc Quebecois, like all other parties here in this House, is going to work along with the government, but I beg it to loosen its purse strings and restore the transfer payments. Our fellow citizens are begging for this. It is the government's primary responsibility.