Mr. Speaker, the serious thing about this whole affair is of course the fact that the Prime Minister knew and that many people were taking advantage of the sponsorship system. And yet, far from wanting to curb the misuse of public funds, the Prime Minister continued to make lavish use of his sponsorship program, as we learned yesterday in connection with the Montreal Grand Prix.
How does the Deputy Prime Minister explain today that, even though the Prime Minister knew, the system continued on stronger than ever, with his blessing moreover?