Mr. Speaker, taxpayers expect that programs are handled efficiently and effectively. We want to ensure that happens. Among a number of measures that we are taking to get to a balanced budget, we are asking all departments and agencies, on a cyclical basis, to look at all their spending.
This year, we are asking 13 departments and agencies, that spend in total about $35 billion, to find efficiencies in savings that will amount to at least 5%, $1.7 billion. These savings will continue year after year.