Mr. Speaker, Enron executives are in big trouble for budgeting practices like that.
Since 1993 the government has persistently and deliberately miscalculated its budget projections to the tune of $80 billion. In 1997 only 2% of the non-projected surplus was allocated to social spending and the other 98% to debt reduction and tax cuts. These funds could have been used to reduce child poverty, to fight homelessness, to enhance our environment.
Why will the government not come clean with Canadians about the surplus funds that are really available to deal with--