Mr. Speaker, I have had the opportunity and the good fortune to be around for a number of years. One of the things I have found is that statistics can often be used in many different types of manipulative ways. I can reflect on the reality that back in the nineties, for three or four years, the United Nations reported Canada as the best country in the world to live in, based on a wide spectrum of social factors. I take great pride in our quality of life. Many Canadians will say that we are the best country in the world to live in. I like to believe that the Liberal Party of Canada had a lot to do with that through engaging Canadians and, as a political entity, bringing ideas forward to the floor of the House of Commons.
Therefore, I give credit where credit is due. Canadians who have taken the time to get engaged and to participate in the political process have made me a proud Liberal in terms of our social programs and health care, where we had record amounts of dollars. That was because of Paul Martin and his health care accord. Programs such as our CPP and pension programs and many of the national programs we have today, if not virtually all of them, exist because of the efforts of wonderful, great Canadians getting engaged, and the Liberal Party has most frequently been the vehicle used to implement them as government policy.
When the member makes reference to some mistakes being made over the last 35 years, I suspect there have been some. However, all in all, I believe that we have done exceptionally well.
I find that at times there is a need for us to reflect on where we are. That is why I concluded my opening remarks by saying that when the Conservative government took office from Paul Martin, there was a healthy surplus. There was a surplus in terms of trade deficit, which means thousands of jobs, and there was a surplus in terms of finances, which means we had a healthier economy.
The Liberal Party, under the good, strong leadership of individuals like Pierre Elliott Trudeau, Paul Martin, and Jean Chrétien, has done exceptionally well over the years.