Madam Speaker, I am very glad to have heard from my hon. colleague from Lac-Saint-Louis, a man I really respect. Working with him on sensitive issues has been a pleasant, positive, and constructive experience. I am sure he can see me coming a mile away, but I have a very straightforward question for him.
The member was elected because he promised a balanced budget by 2019. The government has now tabled three budgets that offer no prospect of balancing the budget. Worse yet, the parliamentary budget officer says that if nothing changes, we will not see a balanced budget until 2045.
With all due respect for my hon. colleague, who is about to vote for a budget that offers no hope of a balanced budget in the foreseeable future, can he give us a frank and honest explanation for why he told his constituents that his government would balance the budget in 2019?