Mr. Speaker, nothing could be further from the truth. In our 2006 and 2007 budgets, our government put forth a series of measures to provide assistance to the arts and culture community. For instance, there was the $50 million for the Canada Council for the Arts. In fact, it was $20 million for fiscal year 2006 and 2007 and $30 million for this year. The $30 million has been made a recurring amount to recognize the 50th anniversary of the Canada Council for the Arts.
Another example is the $30 million allocated for festivals across the country. In particular, I was very pleased recently to announce substantial financial support for some major festivals which have earned great honour for us in the international community: the Luminato festival, the Montreal International Jazz Festival, the Just for Laughs Festival, the Quebec City Summer Festival and the Quebec Winter Carnival. When the sponsorship program was cancelled under the former Liberal government, the carnival was left with no means of assuring its financial survival. I was pleased to announce $160,000 for the Quebec Winter Carnival. Those are only some of the measures that were taken to support the cultural sector.