Mr. Chair, the Member’s impassioned commentary on decentralization stands on its own merit. It needs no response from me. Being from Fort Smith, it resonates, I think, very clearly with most of the folks that are from outside of Yellowknife.
The comment about spending smarter, if I could just speak to the budget dialogue again, I think that’s one of the themes that the people tell us as well. They don’t have all the answers, but they tell us to be efficient, avoid duplication, spend it smarter. The people who are charged with doing that, of course, are us. So that’s the discussion that we have to have as we go forward for the next budget as well.
It comes to hard decisions. If I could point to just to the debate over when we moved money for early childhood and we moved some money out of inclusive schooling. It is achieving that consensus on how to be spending it smarter will challenge us, but I think it’s something that we can’t shirk from or shrink from. It is one of the things we have to do as government. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.