Thank you, Madam Chair.
One of the things we have to think about—we've heard from witnesses not just during the study of this particular issue, but in the study of past issues—is that, in looking at our process, especially now, we need to attract people who have a much broader array of skills than perhaps has been required in the past. Examples of this that we've heard about at this committee are things like expertise in cyber-technology and communications, and so on and so forth, that require us to be able to attract the best and a diversity of people with that array of backgrounds.
Again, I want to come back to this motion. Speaking to this motion, I want to say that I'm a little concerned, and not just about what I've said earlier, which is the chilling impact that this would have on people who want to come forward with allegations in the future. I am, of course, concerned about the impact it could have on the people who have come forward. In at least one of the cases, Mr. Walbourne asked that their identity be protected, and we need to respect that. I'm concerned about those things.
I'm also concerned about what this does to our ability to attract the best and brightest to the forces, with that diverse set of skills that I just talked about. I really think we need to put Canadians and how they're impacted by the armed forces first, and we need to put the people who want to come forward first in our deliberations here, when they want to come forward with allegations of any wrongdoing, including sexual harassment or assault.
When I think about those groups of people, to me, this motion would have the impact of not doing either of those things. That is partly because of what I said earlier in terms of the signal it would send to those who might want to come forward and who have come forward, but also because it sends a signal to others who may be considering joining the forces or who are in the forces and are considering their options. They expect that information to remain confidential and their interests to be looked after and put first. I'm a little nervous that this motion, for the reasons I and others have stated, would not do that.