Mr. Speaker, I would tell the parliamentary secretary that he is in a better position than I am to answer his own question, and he knows it, considering that he was once Quebec's finance minister.
At a time when the federal government is imposing austerity to reach its zero deficit, he opted for the easy solution. I want to point out that Mr. Massé, who was a member of Jean Chrétien's government, spoke publicly of the plan that I mentioned. The Liberal government itself said it was doing that. At a time when Ottawa was cutting transfers and imposing austerity, the other provinces also had to go down the path of austerity. In Quebec, with a half-state and half the means, we managed to accomplish miracles. I commend former premier Pauline Marois for her hard work.