Mr. Speaker, last week the Minister of Finance and the President of the Treasury Board announced a budget surplus of over $13 billion. This money was paid down against our national debt, one of the largest repayments in Canada's history. That saves taxpayers $650 million every year in interest costs.
Our government also identified over $1 billion in annual savings after conducting an extensive expenditure review.
Taxpayers expect that their government will respect their hard-earned dollars. For 13 long years the previous Liberal government spent taxpayers' money willy-nilly as if it belonged to it personally. Last week the Liberal member for Wascana even had the audacity to suggest in this House that he wanted the money back.
The Liberals still do not get it. It is not their money. It belongs to all Canadians. Canada's new Conservative government does care about taxpayers and that benefits all Canadians.