Mr. Speaker, one thing I will certainly admit is that it was with a very heavy heart in 1993 when the Liberal government came in that it had to deal with a $43 billion deficit created by the people across the floor who pretend to be fiscal conservatives and who pretended to the Canadian public that they were managing the economy properly. The contrast between a $43 billion deficit and a $10 billion surplus that they inherited from us is precisely the result of good economic management of this country, the return to prosperity and a common-sense approach.
Were cuts made? Yes. Were they regrettable? Yes, but there was a reason for it. It is clear and the reason is sitting on the seats of the hon. members opposite.
As for the cuts to literacy, I humbly request that the hon. member do what I did and go out and talk to people. Go up to Nunavut and ask the people there what is happening. There are volunteers up there who want to help people in their community who really have very serious problems. They are seeing those cuts. They are seeing the possibility of losing their money with the local college because it will not be able to fund them because there will not be the program funding that is necessary to keep themselves alive.
This is a real problem across the country. Let us not pretend it is not happening. There is $17 million out of the budget and we know exactly what impact it is going to have on literacy.