Mr. Speaker, I have two questions for the member.
The government is proposing a measure that we welcome and support because it will really help people, but it is going to cost a lot of money. Why did the government not include that measure in the budget that was tabled just a few months ago so that we could see the overall fiscal plan? We were already talking about a $78-billion deficit. This measure will add an extra $3.1 billion for this year and nearly $12 billion more over five years. Why does my colleague think that the government did not include this measure in the budget?
Also, my colleague touched on this at the beginning of her speech: Should these payments not be monthly so people have more cash flow, rather than going into debt over a longer period and incurring interest charges?