What kind of measures will the British Presidency take so as to break the deadlock on the budget, and how will it ensure that a viable compromise is found on the financial perspective so that the EU may meet its obligations?

In order to extricate ourselves from the budgetary deadlock, we must increase the European budget in the interests of revival and cohesion.

To solve the budgetary dead end that all of the provinces are dealing with in matters of health care, what is needed is a direct transfer of tax points and a unilateral withdrawal from the Canada Health Act.

Can the Government of Quebec reasonably be expected to cover this $3 billion shortfall out of this $9 billion?

Somehow or other in Canada, in the seventies and eighties, we just thought that we could spend, and it was going to keep on going (1440) Ms. Alexa McDonough: But my question, Mr. Minister, is not in the direction of arguing for bigger deficits; it's saying that in order to make sure we don't end up in a further fiscal squeeze of our own making, are you prepared to look at the possibility that one of the changes that may need to be made is to cut back on a portion of that $100-billion tax reduction program, which benefits not those who are really hurting severely as a result of the massive program cuts but those who least need those cuts ...[+++]?

It is to be feared that if the current budget deadlock should persist, this could have a negative effect in the debate on the long-term future financing of the Community.