I shall be brief, Mr. Speaker. I think that my colleague misunderstood. Given his medical background, I suspect he understood perfectly well, but his question was intended to get at me.
I have no problem with all the provincial health ministers getting together to harmonize the system and get in tune. I do, however, have a problem with the federal government imposing its views and saying that provinces will receive funding only if they agree with its proposals.
That does not allow differences. Yet, this is important when dealing with health care delivery, in certain regions in particular. It is normal for services to vary from region to region, because the situation in regions like mine is not the same as in downtown Toronto, for example.
There have to be differences, inevitably, and we must accept them, but the federal government does not.