Mr. Speaker, we again see the failure of members of the Liberal government to recognize the kind of damage their policies have done to provinces like Manitoba over the last seven years.
It is true that there has been some reinjection of funds through cash transfers and equalization by lifting the ceiling for one year, but the amount that flows to a province like Manitoba and the benefit to less affluent provinces still falls short and hardly makes up for what was taken out of the system. We are still dealing with an enormous shortfall and without the resources to counter the growing demand on the system and changes in the health and education fields that require a much more balanced and involved approach by the federal government.
It is true that finance officials from all provinces thought that lifting the freeze for one year would provide ample room to accommodate entitlements over the present renewal period. However, further work and recent estimates have proven these projections to be incorrect. The current estimate of equalization entitlements for the 1999-2000 fiscal year, the very first year of the new arrangement, exceeds the ceiling by close to $800 million.
The Manitoba government goes on to indicate the impact on Manitoba. If I had more time I would love to read into the record every detail of the letter. Suffice it to say, the new estimates show that the changes will not meet the demand and that there is a real need on the part of provinces to extend the ceiling on equalization.