Business of Supply  Mr. Speaker, it is a very good question that the member raises. The TILMA model is one that I would hope we could maybe expand upon across the country. It does not necessarily have to just be a western initiative. I must admit that it has been a while since I have been involved in the administration of TILMA and how it is unfolding.

Business of Supply  Mr. Speaker, that is a good question. We could also ask why it was put in place in the first place and why it was not resolved many years ago. That is exactly why this particular motion is before the House today: for reference to the Supreme Court. We would get a decision that way and it would take it out of the hands of politicians to be making these kinds of decisions.

Business of Supply  Mr. Speaker, the short answer is that, if we were to start with a blank sheet of paper and start with no trade barriers among provinces, I think we would be quite surprised to find out how many particular industries we do not even recognize today are being impacted by some regulation that is buried somewhere within the system.

Business of Supply  Mr. Speaker, I am delighted to participate this afternoon. Now that we have gotten past all the lawyer self-adulation, we can get back to some blue-collar debate about beer. Today's motion by our hon. colleague from Central Okanagan—Similkameen—Nicola kind of highlights the dilemma that we have in Canada, the dilemma of the federation itself.

Questions Passed as Orders for Returns  With regard to departmental spending, for the period of November 3, 2015, to April 22, 2016, what were the total costs of rentals and purchases of individual staging, lighting and audio equipment, and production and assorted technical costs for all government announcements and public events?

Questions Passed as Orders for Returns  With regard to grants, contributions, and funding applications to departments for the period of November 3, 2015, to April 22, 2016: (a) what applications were approved by departmental officials, but were (i) rejected by the Minister, or (ii) approved on terms other than those initially recommended by departmental officials; (b) for each case in (a)(ii), what are the details of how the approved applications differed from (i) what the applicant sought, and (ii) what the department recommended?

Questions Passed as Orders for Returns  With regard to Ministerial and Governor in Council appointments for the period of November 3, 2015, to April 22, 2016, what the details of all such appointments, including for each the (i) name of the person appointed, (ii) title of the appointment, (iii) organization they were appointed to, (iv) duties of the position, (v) authority for the appointment, (vi) salary and per diems associated with the position, (i) and the name of any sponsoring Minister or Member of Parliament?

Budget Implementation Act, 2016, No. 1  I would concur, Mr. Speaker.

Budget Implementation Act, 2016, No. 1  Mr. Speaker, I rise today as the final speaker on the bill, which has plodded along through the process in the House. I thought I would recap for members of the House how we have gotten to where we are today, describe what the process has been throughout, and then conclude by making a few comments about the bill itself.

Questions on the Order Paper  With regard to each meeting of the Treasury Board during the period of November 3, 2015, to April 22, 2016: (a) what was the date of the meeting; (b) where did the meeting occur; (c) who was in attendance; and (d) what was the agenda of the meeting?

Business of Supply  Madam Chair, I would like to ask the minister if he has any forecast for implementing all the recommendations of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission.

Business of Supply  Madam Chair, he still did not answer the question about infrastructure spending. I also want to remind the minister that the surplus that was left when the Conservative government took office was because the previous Liberal government cut transfer payments to the provinces to the bone.

Business of Supply  Madam Chair, I would like to remind the minister that the reason the transfer payments are the highest ever is because the previous Conservative government raised them to the highest level. The members can clap for that particular minister's comments, but what they are really doing is endorsing what the previous Conservative government has done over the last 10 years.

Business of Supply  Madam Chair, the minister did not answer the question whether he agreed with his department, which obviously does not agree with the new government. My friend who is the chair of the finance committee made comments about Canada is back. The evidence that the minister received in his briefing from his department clearly points that Canada had not gone anywhere.

Business of Supply  Madam Chair, I want to talk a bit about the debt that the budget is going to leave future generations of Canadians. We all know there was a promise in the election campaign by the now Prime Minister that we would run a $10-billion deficit and it would be used to build infrastructure.