Mr. Chair, I would say it's a combination of both. You will have some members who will retire in order to be appointed.
You have to understand the process by which the Governor in Council puts offers of employment on the Governor in Council's website. The criteria are there. If military members are entitled to apply in a certain competition, and if they meet the criteria as set out by PCO and meet the different thresholds, they may get interviewed, and that may lead to an offer of employment. Some of them may well have to retire in order to apply; others will have been retired for some years. They will apply for the same job postings available on the Governor in Council's site.
One of the important things that Madame Maynard raised is that there is a provision in the National Defence Act for the Governor in Council to appoint a serving member to serve on the board while in uniform. That, for us, would have a clear and direct impact on its independence. Although I admit that this issue was not raised by the board in 2003 when Justice Lamer went around, it will be the next time around. This is an issue that I'm concerned with. This is an issue the board is concerned with. We will recommend that subsection 29.16(10) be removed from the act.