A former prime minister spoke about several controversial topics such as immigration and debt reform in the global economy Wednesday.

Jean Chrétien, former prime minister of Canada, explained how he helped cut national debt and eventually helped create a surplus during his time as prime minister. After speaking for 15 minutes, the floor was opened for local area high school students to ask questions of himself and Vicente Fox, former president of Mexico. The questions ranged from foreign policy to environmental concerns.

“Democracy works when the citizens are paying attention and watching society,” Chrétien said.

Chrétien visited campus as the keynote speaker in the six-part series of the Vicente Fox Forum of World Leaders at TCU.

Provost Nowell Donovan said the forum was designed to invite leaders in the global realm to invest in the future leaders of the world.

Chrétien, the former minister of energy, mines and resources in Canada, said immigration was a consistent topic in the political sphere.

“Canada has not had a problem with immigration because we understand immigration; we understand the importance of living in a global village,” he said.

Fox agreed with Chrétien.

“We must not build walls or fence our borders but rather build bridges,” Fox said. “We must use our minds and wisdom to create a global community.”

With President Barack Obama issuing his proposed annual budget this past week, the former prime minister talked about deficit and spending. Chrétien was credited with eliminating a $42 billion national debt during his time in office, according to CBC News Canada.

“In Canada, we seriously cut spending, and we raised prices on some things but found ways to get money elsewhere,” Chrétien said.

He went on to say that the key to significantly reducing debt is to exempt nobody in the cuts.

In America, the divide between the upper and lower class is unacceptable, he said.

No one can be exempt, Chrétien said. This is evidenced by Canada cutting its annual budget 19 percent in one year and letting go of 20 percent of bureaucrats over three years, he said.

Debt went down and taxes went up accordingly, he said.

Also, relative to the rest of the world, the United States has too low of a tax on gas, Chrétien said.

“People will use their cars regardless if the price goes up,” he said.

It was important for countries to face debt concerns, he said.

“You cannot keep increasing debt; soon, you will hit a wall,” he said.

A native of Quebec, Chrétien concluded his time on stage with some travel advice for anyone looking to go to Canada.

“If you are looking for snow, go to the Northwest Territory,” he said. “If you want to have nice days, you go to the Rockies. If you want to meet nice people, you go to Quebec.”