Mr. Speaker, I will try and do some face saving for the benefit of the hon. member. This was my answer to this question: Yes, if the members of the Commission of Inquiry on Somalia believe it is in the best interests of all concerned and it is part of their mandate, and if they wish to publish an interim report, they can go ahead. I am not asking them to do so because I do not want to interfere with the work of the inquiry. But if they think it should be done, I have no objection.
In fact, and I say this to avoid any misunderstand, I hope to get to the bottom of all this, not only of the facts that are of interest to the hon. member but of who did what in Somalia, how this was possible, how it was covered up, if there was a cover up, who is responsible, and how we can make sure this will not happen again.
I would like to have, and I am sure all members of this House are with me on this, all the answers to everything connected with the Somalia affair before the next election. This does not mean I know the date. That is always at the discretion of the Prime Minister. It is after all his prerogative. I hope the commission of inquiry will
publish its report on March 31, as scheduled, then we will all know where we are.