Jim Hart

[Canadian Armed Forces, October 8th, 1996]

Mr. Speaker, again Canadians are getting used to no answers in the House of Commons.

We have to remember that nothing honourable happened today. The person who resigned admitted to lying to the military police. They have admitted to lying and to breaking the spirit of the Access to Information Act. The government is responsible for those actions.

The Canadian public have listened month after month, day in and day out to this Prime Minister saying there was no problem at the Department of National Defence. Does the Prime Minister accept full responsibility for the mishandling of the appointment of the former chief of defence staff, General Jean Boyle?

[Canadian Armed Forces, October 8th, 1996]

Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Prime Minister.

For months now the Prime Minister has said that the former defence minister and General Boyle were operating the armed forces to the satisfaction of the government, no major crisis. Since then the minister and the chief of defence staff have resigned under a cloud and on the heels of many scandals. Yesterday the new defence minister admitted that the armed forces face a major crisis.

How can the Prime Minister explain the flip flop? Does the Prime Minister believe there is a major crisis in the armed forces or not?

[Canadian Armed Forces, October 7th, 1996]

Mr. Speaker, I thank the minister for his answers. There is a culture of cover-up at national defence, and the Liberals have not only condoned it, they have fostered it by refusing to take any action to remedy it.

Documents have been shredded, the military police have been lied to, the public has been misled, the spirit of the Access to Information Act has been broken and the morale of the good people in our Canadian Armed Forces has been dragged through the mud.

Yet one of the major players in this whole affair still has his job. Will the minister take action today and fire General Boyle?

[Canadian Armed Forces, October 7th, 1996]

Mr. Speaker, I take it that was a yes.

The minister's resignation highlights another Liberal double standard. The last defence minister wrote a letter to the Immigration and Refugee Board. He screwed up. He admitted it and he quit. It was the only thing he could do. General Boyle should not be far behind. Boyle signed a letter authorizing the release of altered documents. He screwed up and he admitted it.

Will the government explain why mea culpa is okay for General Boyle when the defence minister lost his job over it?

[Canadian Armed Forces, October 7th, 1996]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to congratulate the new defence minister in his new position. He has been the prime minister's firefighter and he is going to be busier than Smokey the Bear at national defence.

Reform wants to see morale restored in the Canadian Armed Forces. On Friday the former defence minister caved in to pressure and threw in the towel, but he left behind his hand-picked chief of defence staff, General Jean Boyle. Will the new defence minister prove his commitment to restoring morale in the Canadian Armed Forces and fire General Boyle?

[National Defence, October 3rd, 1996]

Mr. Speaker, the government's failure to issue a Somalia medal shows its complete disregard for morale in the Canadian Armed Forces

The Prime Minister is rewarding his bad apples, General Boyle and the defence minister, when they do not deserve it. Through his lack of leadership, the Prime Minister has caused morale in the forces to suffer.

When will the government shift its obsessive and misguided support for the defence minister and General Boyle to recognize armed forces personnel who served in Somalia on Canada's behalf?

[National Defence, October 3rd, 1996]

Mr. Speaker, Canadians know it is this Liberal government that has destroyed the morale of the Canadian Armed Forces. It is this lame duck minister and this government that are playing politics at the expense of armed forces personnel.

Despite what the Liberals think, most military personnel who served in Somalia served with distinction and should be recognized for their often stellar performance.

The Prime Minister and the defence minister continue to support General Boyle but refuse to support the rank and file in the Canadian Armed Forces.

Will the defence minister move his support from General Boyle to our Somalia veterans and strike and issue a Somalia medal?

[Somalia Inquiry, October 2nd, 1996]

Mr. Speaker, being a former member of the Canadian Armed Forces, I take this to heart.

The worst situation in the Canadian Armed Forces and for personnel in the Canadian Armed Forces was when the chief of defence staff stood up, blamed everything on his subordinates and said that his subordinates lacked moral fibre. That was the worst thing that ever happened.

In a speech on ethics in 1991 the Prime Minister stated in this House: "When we form government, every minister in the cabinet that I will be presiding over will have to take full responsibility for what is going on in his department. If there is any bungling in the department, the minister will have to take the responsibility".

Canadians know there has been a whole lot of bungling going on in the minister's department. I have a simple question for the Prime Minister: Exactly how much does it take before the Prime Minister, before you hold your Minister of National-

[Somalia Inquiry, October 2nd, 1996]

Mr. Speaker, the answers of the defence minister and the Prime Minister may have been acceptable, except for one small fact.

Troops from the Canadian Armed Forces are deployed around the world. This issue of leadership goes right to the heart of the matter. If they do not do something, they are going to get someone killed in our Canadian Armed Forces.

Today Roberto Gonzales contradicted the general and implicated him in the cover-up. I would like to ask the Prime Minister a very simple question: Will the Prime Minister clearly state to this House whether or not General Boyle still enjoys the confidence of this government?

[Canadian Armed Forces, October 1st, 1996]

Mr. Speaker, the minister forgets that he himself this past summer suggested that the military justice system needs to be reviewed. The military justice system is in shambles under this minister.

There are double standards applied. General Boyle got special treatment when he was interviewed and he was handled with kid gloves. In Commander Marsaw's case witnesses were grilled and accused of lying. It appears that Marsaw was railroaded and the justice system has failed him.

It is time for a complete overhaul of the judge advocate general's office. This is the only way to avoid repeats of events like Marsaw's case.

To restore morale in the Canadian Armed Forces and to demonstrate leadership, will the minister commit to an immediate overhaul of the justice system in the military?