Mr. Speaker, in his last budget in December 2001, the former Minister of Finance was predicting a surplus of $2 billion for the year 2002-03. Today, six months from the end of the fiscal year, the current Minister of Finance is refusing to provide a credible estimate.
How is it that the government could give us an estimate of the budget surplus 15 months in advance, yet now it refuses to do so five months before the end of the current fiscal year?