Mr. Speaker, since this is the first time I have had the opportunity to speak in the House in 2003, I would like to wish a happy New Year to all my constituents in Lotbinière—L'Érable and to all Quebeckers.
Once again, I rise in this House to talk about the report of the Auditor General. As you probably know, last December, a bombshell was dropped when the media and the public learned that the cost of the gun registry would reach $1 billion.
In fact, this afternoon, the public accounts committee as well as my colleagues from the Canadian Alliance and the Conservative Party were told that, depending upon their availability, at least two ministers would appear before the committee on February 24, to explain the situation. The Standing Committee on Public Accounts, as we know, examines why there are so many discrepancies and why the Auditor General feels the need to criticize certain situations.
The current Minister of Justice and the President of the Treasury Board will therefore have to appear before us on or about February 24 to explain why the costs have gone from $2 million to $1 billion. We had been told that the costs would be $117 million and that users would pay $115 million. We know now what the costs are.
When the Auditor General tabled her report, the employment insurance fund was mentioned once again. The problem of the fund—as you know—is the result of a Liberal invention that allows the Minister of Finance to rack up surpluses every year and to shift them into the consolidated fund. Thus, the debt is being reduced, but with money belonging to small and medium businesses and to workers, which is inconceivable.
This is the third time that the Auditor General has asked the current government to legislate and to try to bring more equity into the current employment insurance plan.
Also, when we talked about the Auditor General's report that was tabled last December, we also mentioned the many reports that are required from first nations for them to receive money. All this leads to a bureaucracy that is extremely costly, which is detrimental to the first nations.
When I asked the question to the Minister of Finance last December, I was trying to find out when the federal government would put an end to this waste of money all over the place. I am thinking in particular of the waste in the gun control program and in the employment insurance fund. We also talked about the 20 million social insurance numbers that have gone missing.
So, this government is behaving somewhat like an amateur; it is improvising. Who has to pay, in the end? It is the taxpayers and the low income earners. This is why members of the Bloc Quebecois have risen many times in the House and tried to get some explanations.
Tonight, I am asking the question once again: when will the federal government put an end to this waste in the gun control program and in the management of the employment insurance fund and at Indian Affairs? Let us not forget that each time the Auditor General tables her report, she questions the accounting methods used by the Minister of Finance. This government creates foundations to try to invest money without the foundations being accountable to the House of Commons.