“The finance minister said he found $60 billion in savings, but his deputy said there were no real savings and spending is actually up. Did the minister mislead the House? If not, where are those savings?”

“Mr. Speaker, the Minister of Finance told this House that they had found $60 billion in savings in the expenditure review. His own deputy minister, though, stated that the review was merely an allocation exercise and that there were no actual savings. The costly credit card budget is showing an increase of billions in operating spending, adding to the already crushing debt load on Canadians. Did the finance minister mislead the House, as his deputy and the budget show? If not, where is the $60 billion in savings?”

“The ministers said they found $60 billion in savings, but their own budget shows spending went up by billions. Did they mislead the House, or where is that money?”

“Mr. Speaker, not wanting to be left out, the President of the Treasury Board, responsible for spending oversight, also stated that they had found $60 billion in savings. His deputy, though, contradicted him, calling it a “reallocation exercise” and stating there were no actual savings. Here we have the two ministers most responsible for the public purse both claiming $60 billion in savings, yet the costly credit card budget shows an increase of billions in operating spending. Did both ministers mislead the House? If not, where is the $60 billion in savings?”