Mr. Speaker, I would agree with my colleague's concluding comments on the NDP motion being considerably less than well thought through.
I would also agree in general terms with my friend, as I have heard from various speakers across the aisle today, that small and medium-sized businesses are the driving energy behind our economy. I would again remind all of my friends across the way that Bloomberg, the business and financial agency, recently conducted a significantly well-researched global poll and found that Canada is, in fact, among the top-ranking countries when it comes to a favourable climate for startups and the growth of small to medium-sized to major-sized businesses.
My question has more to do with my friend's comments about timely elections. I would remind him that in the 1990s, the Chrétien government, of which he spoke so glowingly, once went almost two years between budgets. In fact, an individual here in Ottawa, whom my friend and others on the opposition side have been fond of quoting recently, the former parliamentary budget officer, has said that the finance minister has been quite prudent in waiting for some of the dust to settle in the current economic uncertainty and that, in fact, no great damage will be done to the economy by having a bit of space before the budget, only a few days later this year than often in the past.