Madam Speaker, as I mentioned during my earlier intervention, I was in the private sector as well. I was very successful in telecommunications. There were times when I did not get a sale of certain ones I had applied for. I would put in for tenders and I lost out. That is the way life goes in the private sector; sometimes we just do not get the sale we want. In the long term that did not prevent my company from going on to become successful. What we do is move on to the next sale. If we are good we will make another sale. We do not need somebody, especially taxpayers, to come along and guarantee a bond for us.
I will not argue with the fact that the member has a very successful company in his riding. I would still say that on balance the government picks losers more often than it picks winners. There are long lists of companies that can be trotted out in this House and are trotted out. In the Prime Minister’s riding money is poured into companies, taxpayers’ money, other people’s money, and they still go under. I would question the wisdom of any government guaranteeing the performance of private companies when the private sector will not do it.
Frankly, although members can come up with individual successes, I still think the principle of taxpayer assistance to the private sector in that way is wrong. I have been there. It is not as if I am arguing from a position of no knowledge. I have been there. I lost government contracts and opportunities in the United States, in Seattle, at the time when I was in business. I did not weep, cry and go to the government departments to give me money so that I could do it. I just went on to the next sale and built my company in another way.