Thank you very much, Mr. Chair.
It's nice to be on this committee with everyone today. This is not my normal committee, so I'm eager to be able to participate.
I want to thank all of the witnesses for being here with us today.
Like many of the members of Parliament who have spoken before me, I'm quite horrified by the report. On behalf of the constituents I represent in Edmonton Strathcona, I want to express my thanks to you, Ms. Hogan, for this comprehensive report. It's shocking, but you've provided important information for parliamentarians, so I'm very grateful.
When I look at the report, however, I'm alarmed, frankly, that we have a procurement system in this country that is so vulnerable and that has been taken such advantage of. I can't help but think of some of the organizations I've worked with in my riding of Edmonton Strathcona that have had to go through incredible hoops just to get funding—funding significantly less than $60 million. I think of things like the Flying Canoë Volant festival, the biggest French festival in Edmonton. I think about the Edmonton Ski Club and the Ritchie Community League. None of them was able to access the funds that were able to be accessed in this case, the $60 million. What organizations across this country could do with that money is frankly what I'm thinking of when I think about this waste.
I have a question for you, Ms. Hogan. What do I say to the people and organizations in my riding that are trying to get funding from this government, when they see this incredibly unfair process? Would you agree that it seems as though a system like this is in fact very much stacked against them?