Mr. Speaker, with great respect for my hon. colleague, I would say he is comparing apples and oranges. There is absolutely no direct link between the tax revenues of all the provinces, taken as a whole, and the revenues of the federal government. If there were only three provinces, provincial tax revenues would, of course, be much lower than those of the federal government.
He is trying to compare the taxes raised by one government with those raised by 13 governments. It is very clear that the tax revenues of 13 governments, taken together, are greater than those of one single government. Still, the financial obligations of these 13 governments are infinitely greater than that of the federal government.
When the hon. member speaks of the federal government's debt, which is larger than the debts of all provincial and territorial governments taken together, let me simply remind the House that this is the unfortunate legacy of previous Liberal governments.