Mr. Speaker, the hon. member for Calgary Southwest displays a profound ignorance of the National Defence Act.
First, the Judge Advocate General is appointed by the Prime Minister of Canada. It is an order in council appointment because that person must be independent in the advice he or she gives to ministers. That person is the chief legal officer in the Canadian Armed Forces.
Under the terms of the National Defence Act that person reports on a day to day basis to the Minister of National Defence. It was quite appropriate for me in the course of the last year to discuss aspects of the Somalia case with the Judge Advocate General, as his role under the National Defence Act explicitly says that he should be the one giving legal advice to the minister.
I verified certain aspects with the Judge Advocate General this morning because I wanted to make sure that anything I say on the floor of the House of Commons is absolutely and totally the truth. The government has the interests of all Canadians in mind in getting to the bottom of the events in Somalia in 1993.
The Judge Advocate General confirmed that the former deputy minister had nothing whatsoever to do with the drafting of the terms of reference. They were submitted to the Privy Council office. They were reviewed by the Department of Justice and everyone stands by them.