Mr. Speaker, the government told Canadians its new benefit software program would cost $1.75 billion and that it would not be launched without conditions of success being met. Estimates have the actual cost at almost three times as much, $6.6 billion, and reports confirm that the government's own service standards are not being met. In fact, last month there was a backlog of 85,000 new benefit applications. These are Canadians who need these benefits for basic essentials like food and shelter.
Can the minister explain to seniors who are forced to pay the price of yet another failed Liberal program why it is way over budget?