Finance committee  I found the discussions with the universities and their needs very interesting. I've been in the field of education for some 40 years. But let us not forget that those students have to come from somewhere. They come from municipalities, and we as municipalities are continually being asked to do more and more for our citizens.

Finance committee  Thank you, Mr. Chairman and members of Parliament. I want to first of all identify some of the major issues that confront municipalities. We are another order of government, along with both provincial and federal. One of the key issues we are concerned about is the municipal fiscal imbalance.