Mr. Speaker, the hon. member ought to know that the EI account has been consolidated with the books of Canada since 1986 on the advice of the auditor general at the time. This means that the annual premium revenue and program costs in a given year directly affect the government's bottom line in that year.
The hon. member should also know that the government has reduced the EI premium rate in every year since 1994 from a high of $3.07 to $1.98 in 2004.