House of Commons photoWon his last election, in 1997, with 53% of the vote.
Somalia Inquiry April 19th, 1996
Mr. Speaker, why will the minister not show some leadership and take the bull by the horns instead of dragging the bull into the House each and every day?
General Boyle said he had no knowledge of a plan to alter, rename and destroy documents related to the Somalia affair. Colonel Haswell and Roberto Gonzales say that is not true. They say that all Somalia information requests had to be approved by General Boyle. Boyle's signature even appears-
Somalia Inquiry April 19th, 1996
Mr. Speaker, the minister tries to make us believe that this was a timely delivery of documents when he knows full well that these documents should have been delivered a year ago to the Somalia commission.
Along with the 12 boxes of information turned over to the inquiry, we also learned from Roberto Gonzales, a former director general of public affairs at DND, that General Boyle approved of a
plan to hide important Somalia documents. This confirms earlier allegations made by Colonel Haswell who said that Boyle, de Chastelain and Mr. Robert Fowler knew of the planned cover-up.
Can the minister confirm today that General Boyle had nothing whatsoever to do with the cover-up?
Somalia Inquiry April 19th, 1996
Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Minister of National Defence.
The minister desperately wants Canadians to believe that the military brass did not try to cover up the Somalia scandal. He desperately wants us to believe that missing and altered documents were simply the result of computer error or clerical error. Twelve boxes of documents. That is what senior defence officials were forced to grudgingly turn over to the Somalia inquiry.
The commission counsel announced this morning that there are still gaps. How much more evidence does the minister need before he takes some action, any action, on the Somalia cover-up?
Somalia Inquiry April 18th, 1996
Mr. Speaker, in view of the attempted cover-up of data relevant to the Somalia inquiry, the Somalia inquiry had to shut down this week. The commissioners continue to be concerned about the integrity of the documents they received from the minister's department and they are now concerned about the integrity of the work the commission is able to do.
When will the minister accept responsibility for this entire scandal and cover-up and resign?
Somalia Inquiry April 18th, 1996
Mr. Speaker, I do not blame the chief of defence staff. I blame the Minister of National Defence for this mess.
Canadians will not be surprised if the defence minister refuses to take any action against his friend Jean Boyle. The defence minister and the Prime Minister could not have appointed Boyle as chief of defence staff with the recommendation of the privy council office.
Will the minister admit that the privy council office had serious reservations about Boyle's suitability for the position of chief of defence staff? Can he tell the House what concerns the office expressed and why he rejected them?
Somalia Inquiry April 18th, 1996
Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Minister of National Defence.
Chief of Defence Staff Boyle is up to his ears in the Somalia scandal cover-up, and yet the defence minister continues to allow Boyle to act as suspect, star witness, judge and jury in the Somalia affair.
Will the defence minister, in the name of fairness and justice, ask Boyle, who should never have been made chief of defence staff in the first place, to step aside until the Somalia inquiry gets to the bottom of this whole affair?
Department Of Human Resources Development Act April 18th, 1996
What did John Nunziata say?
Somalia Inquiry April 17th, 1996
Mr. Speaker, the minister is trying to twist this, as the Liberals do so well, and is shirking his responsibility as a minister of the crown.
Canadians and armed forces personnel are tired of this minister's lacklustre performance.
I will state again, "he did not deem it necessary to go further". The minister had to know that senior officials at DND were defying the minister's own order of a year ago to turn over documents to the Somalia commission.
How can the minister continue in his job knowing that the officials at DND defied his orders?
Somalia Inquiry April 17th, 1996
Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Minister of National Defence.
On October 24, 1995 at 8.40 a.m., Nancy Fournier, a clerk of DND's public affairs branch, was interviewed by the military police about her refusal to destroy documents related to the Somalia affair. Let me quote: "She can recall on numerous occasions being told to destroy files but specifically recalls a senior officer saying to her `had you got rid of this stuff like I told you this wouldn't be happening now"'.
According to the commission counsel on Monday they said: "the minister and the department did not deem it necessary to go any further". Why not?
Somalia Inquiry April 16th, 1996
Mr. Speaker, the Somalia commission is fed up with the cover-up by this minister's officials. The minister is no better.
According to commission counsel, the minister knew last October that key evidence was missing. He did not inform the inquiry until just recently. The minister deemed it unnecessary to proceed with that information.
Will the minister of defence acknowledge his responsibility for this cover-up, do the honourable thing and resign?