Mr. Speaker, the question is appropriate. I addressed this to some extent in my speech, and I can expand upon it now.
Making life affordable for people is something we are very concerned about. The NDP has come up with a number of measures under the leadership of the member for Sudbury and the member for Québec, who are doing excellent work on this.
These measures are intended to help not only Canadian consumers with respect to credit cards and ATM fees, among other things, but also small and medium-sized enterprises, an important economic driver that is often overlooked in our economic policies.
This measure will cost the Canadian government over $3 billion in lost revenue. It is imperative to know how those surpluses should be allocated. Since 2006, Canada's debt has increased by 60%. Sixty per cent since 2006. We need to start recognizing this situation.
I know that the former finance minister, Mr. Flaherty, cared about this situation. That is probably one of the reasons why he voiced strong reservations about income splitting.
With any future budget surplus, the Canadian government must consider paying down the debt and possibly cutting taxes, which will benefit many Canadians, as well as reinvesting in public services. After the huge cuts, they really need it. They have often been misguided by various departments.