A similar situation arose during the Great Depression in the 1920s when the new welfare state severely burdened the provinces, but the federal government continued to run surpluses.
In the past few years, the major issue of fiscal imbalance has been identified by all parties of the National Assembly of Quebec.
The PQ proposes to uphold efforts to convince the federal government to give money back to Quebec until then.
Prime Minister Paul Martin and his federal Liberals prefer to speak of a fiscal "pressure" on provinces, not admitting directly to the responsibility of the Canadian government.
The potential solution advocated by most of the provincial premiers is that the transfer payments from the federal government to the provinces be substantially increased.