Mr. Godin and I come from the same province, and we are familiar with the political traditions with regard to deputy returning officers. There is indeed a tradition of paying people who work at the polling stations in the Maritimes. I don't see anything inappropriate about it, as long as those payments are recorded on the list of candidates' expenses.
As for contributions from youths under 18 years of age, I have learned that one of our party's leadership candidates repaid those kinds of contributions. We have responded to a public reaction in his case. I think that's appropriate in the circumstances.
Having said that, I share the view of my friend Mr. Lepsoe. Can we afford to go to court to prohibit a youth under 18 years of age from making contributions? Can a youth make a contribution to the political process provided it involves his or her own money? You have to be at least 14 years old to vote for a candidate for the leadership of the Liberal Party of Canada. You have to be at least 14 to be a young Liberal registered on our delegate list. We've previously seen youths taking part in a democratic exercise in a political party. In my opinion, we must act with extreme care in this regard.
I'll close by asking you whether you are sure that no one under 18 years of age has contributed to the New Democratic Party, and whether your procedures for remedying this kind of situation are adequate.