Madam Speaker, they are still carrying on over there. Could you ask them to calm down?
Obviously, it is painful to hear something as true as that. Again, my congratulations to the hon. member for Fundy--Royal for this excellent initiative.
Unlike our Liberal colleagues and my colleague from Medicine Hat who has just spoken, he can differentiate between a government expenditure and a government investment. When education is concerned, it is an investment. My colleague has the wisdom to ensure that education, and the contribution a student makes to it, are treated as an investment.
It is an investment not just for the student himself or herself, but for society. It enriches society, thus ensuring that, from the standpoint of the economy and of the reputation of Quebec and Canada, we may achieve a level of intellectual development that is appreciable, comparable, even economically advantageous, and ultimately train and retain our best minds.
Earlier, I heard my colleague from Medicine Hat say “Yes, they go to the United States because of the better standard of living. They can pay back their student loans after two or three years of working”. He neglected to point out, however, that after those two or three years, they stay there. They stay in the States and do not come back here. Perhaps a very few of them do, but most stay in the U.S.
In Quebec, as in Canada, if they had a better chance right from the start, better conditions—I am not saying that the proposal by my colleague from Fundy--Royal is going to solve everything, but if we added such a measure, if we treated them better from the start—maybe these students would stay instead of leaving. Perhaps they would not take off for the States, perhaps they would stay here and contribute to Quebec and to Canada. Perhaps also the brain drain would not be becoming more and more of a sad reality in Quebec and in Canada.
I support such an initiative. I regret the fact that we have, across the floor, people who love to quash initiatives, admirable initiatives such as the one of my colleague from Fundy--Royal, people on the side of the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Finance who go around quashing worthwhile initiatives.
Since I have a few minutes left, I would like to go back to some of the comments made by the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Finance, who seemed to be criticizing this worthwhile initiative without reason.
He said, “There are better ways of helping students in Canada”. Sure, but which ones? Which other means did this government put in place over the past few years, other than make drastic cuts to the Canada social transfer, to help post-secondary education in all the provinces, including in Quebec? The parliamentary secretary said that “thanks to the Liberal government's initiatives, 80% of the students do not pay taxes”.
I should point out that the hon. member's proposal does not directly target students who are still in university, but those who have graduated. The Liberal member seems to forget that the reason 80% of the students do not pay taxes is that they do not have sufficient income to do so in the first place.
The measure proposed by the hon. member for Fundy—Royal is primarily designed for those who are completing their education, those who are on the labour market and who want to have the best opportunities from the start and thus be able to live without stress, as they begin their professional career.
The parliamentary secretary referred to the Canada education savings grant. It goes without saying that this is a good initiative. In fact, when the Minister of Finance introduced this program, we welcomed it, because it is very good. However, this program is designed for the parents of children who will eventually pursue a post-secondary education. It is also designed for parents who have the financial means to take advantage of it.
In order to fully benefit from a registered education savings plan such as the one introduced by the Minister of Finance, parents have to invest at least $200 per month. So, this is not for everyone, and this program overlooks a reality in that an increasing number of students no longer rely on their parents. They pay for their own education and, when they graduate, they must pay off the debt they have incurred. Therefore, we must help these students.
This is why the Bloc Quebecois will happily, enthusiastically and readily support an initiative such as the one proposed by the hon. member for Fundy--Royal.