Mr. Speaker, on Tuesday the finance minister's parliamentary secretary finally revealed why Canadian banks held up so well during the recession. His explanation was, “Accolades to the Liberals. The Liberals made sure that we kept regulations in place that kept our banks strong”.
He was of course referring to the Liberal Party whose foresight saw our banking sector through a financial crisis that the Conservatives did not even see coming. He was referring to the Liberals who balanced nine straight budgets, not the Conservatives who turned those surpluses into deficits. He was referring to the Liberals who reduced EI premiums for 13 straight years, not the Conservatives who are hiking them and taxing Canadians more for the privilege of working. He was referring to the same Liberals who in 1993 inherited an 11% unemployment rate and brought it down to 6%, not the Conservatives who ran it back up to 8%.
I agree with the parliamentary secretary. Accolades to the Liberals.