Mr. Speaker, on October 23 during question period I asked a question of the Conservative government regarding its electoral in-and-out finance scheme that Elections Canada ruled as being in violation of the Elections Act and refused rebates to candidates and their financial agents who had applied for rebates.
I also raised the issue that some of the candidates for the Conservative government in the 2006 election, and who had participated in this in-and-out electoral scam or scheme, have since been appointed to important posts.
The House leader of the government answered that the Conservative Party and the Conservative government had done no wrong, that they always follow the law and they have in the past and will in the future.
However, that is not what Elections Canada has said. Elections Canada has discounted and disallowed rebate requests from Conservative candidates on the basis that some of their expenses did not in fact follow the law, and were not made in order to pay for a local campaign and enhance the visibility of the local candidate in his or her own campaign.
The House leader of the government also did not answer the question regarding the number of these individuals who have since been appointed to important posts.
Let me give a couple of examples. Andrew House, Conservative candidate in Halifax is currently the director of communications for the Minister of Canadian Heritage, Status of Women and Official Languages, and he intends to stand as a Conservative candidate whenever the next election takes place. What is interesting is that the minister herself participated in this electoral financing in-and-out scheme.
The Conservative Party is currently under investigation by Elections Canada for allegedly funnelling over $1.2 million in national advertising costs to regional candidates during the 2006 federal election in order to circumvent federal election spending limits.
Elections Canada itself, not the Liberal Party, not the Bloc, not the NDP and not the media, has rejected advertising expenses filed by 66 Conservative candidates because Elections Canada has determined they did not comply with election law.
Last month, in September, the Liberals released the names along with financial details concerning 129 former Conservative candidates and official agents who were named as participants in this apparent scheme to violate spending limits and pad candidate rebates.
We have requested that the Commissioner of Elections Canada look into nine additional campaigns that may have participated in this scheme. Elections Canada has spoken.
I am not giving the Liberal's conclusion. I am giving Elections Canada--