Mr. Speaker, the Solicitor General would have us believe that there is a difference between rewarding a friend and rewarding a friend when he works for a firm.
But this is fact. The minister's friend negotiated the contract. The minister's friend signed the contract. All the paperwork from the minister's department is addressed to his friend. The minister's friend and his partners benefited financially from the minister's department. Every lead goes to the minister's friend.
Why can the minister and the government not see that there is a conflict of interest and this minister has to pay the price?