Mr. Speaker, there is one issue I want to pursue with the hon. member, an issue that does disappoint me, and that is the absence in the throne speech of any reference to productivity or prosperity. We have made gains over the last number of years, but I still consider us substantially behind the United States vis-à-vis our level of productivity.
One thing we look for is measures that encourage people to work, to invest and to save. Some of those issues are training, investment, education, fiscal policy, and infrastructure.
As for a few of the initiatives in the throne speech, such as the child care initiative and the lack of institutionalized formal child care, the fiscal policy of going with the reduction of the consumption tax and the raising of personal income taxes, especially for the lower and middle income people, it seems to me, and I hope I am wrong, that we may be back on a trend we were on 13 years ago, when the Conservatives were in power. The deficit was $43 billion, interest rates were at 12%, the unemployment rate was at 11% and the whole country was one total economic basket case.
Does the hon. member across the way share my fear that we may be on the very same track we were several years ago?