June 4, 1940 (19th Parliament, 1st Session)

Mr. HANSON (York-Sunbury):

I have no doubt that by the end of the fiscal year, March 31, 1940, they have reached the larger figure which the minister mentioned. I point out that these statistics refer solely to expenditures under relief legislation. But in addition there are expenditures of public money under such headings as the National Housing Act, the home improvement plan, which of course is supposed to be more or less self-liquidating and I hope may be fully self-liquidating; the
510 COMMONS
Unemployment Relief-Mr. Hanson (Sunbury)
Prairie Farm Rehabilitation Act; direct public works on behalf of the dominion which were made for alleviation of the unemployment problem, and similar measures. I understand that the expenditures under the Prairie Farm Rehabilitation Act from 1935 to date amount to approximately $9,600,000, and I have no doubt that the total expenditures for relief in all categories cannot be far short of $1,500,000,000. That is a huge, a staggering sum of money for a small country like Canada.