Mr. Speaker, I would like to compliment and thank the Minister of Finance for doing such an outstanding job in bringing things together and presenting it in such a way that people can understand and relate to it.
A great deal of pre-budget consultation was done. Could the Minister of Finance add to what kind of consultations took place? I understand he and his parliamentary secretary have gone to all the regions of Canada. Could he provide a backdrop as to why the department does these pre-budget consultations and highlight some of the places he has gone to?