Mr. Speaker, I would like to pick up on the member's last statement because his so correct.
When we look at it, even before the recession occurred a number of years ago, the government entered into a situation where we went from a surplus budget to a deficit situation. It has been in that deficit situation for years now.
Then when we are in an election year, the Conservatives wave a wand to try to give Canadians this impression, spending a lot of money to tell Canadians, that there is a surplus. The way the surplus was created was through the wholesale sale of GM shares and dipping into the contingency fund, for a marginal surplus that could evaporate depending on the price of oil.
Would the member provide his thoughts in regard to how much a falsehood it is to give Canadians the impression, in the time of an election, that the books are in good order when it comes to balanced budgets?