Preston Manning

[Somalia Inquiry, September 17th, 1996]

Mr. Speaker, in the replies of both the Prime Minister and the Minister of National Defence today on the question of the mess at that department, we have received the ultimate in hypocritical answers by saying let the Somalia inquiry decide.

It was the defence minister himself who tried to get a friend of the government appointed as a commissioner of the inquiry. It is top military officials and officials of the department who have been implicated in fixing documents to be supplied to the commission. It is the government itself that has given legal help to some participants in the process but not others.

My question is for the Prime Minister. If the Prime Minister believes in letting the commission do its work, why does he not fire the Minister of National Defence and General Boyle for failing to do so?

[Department Of National Defence, September 17th, 1996]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister simply illustrates my point. I give him a chance to defend the reputation and morale of the Canadian Armed Forces and he immediately defends the reputation and morale of his political friends.

The Prime Minister was wrong in his choice of Minister of National Defence and wrong in his support of General Boyle. In

defending them he is really defending Liberal political interests and loyalties and failing to defend the national interests.

Are the political interests and loyalties of Liberals really worth more to the Prime Minister than the reputation and morale of the Canadian Armed Forces?

[Department Of National Defence, September 17th, 1996]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister's idea of national defence seems to be defending the minister and his political appointee. He should be defending the men and women of the Canadian Armed Forces who are embarrassed by flaws in the top leadership and who are losing their respect for the Minister of National Defence. Instead, the Prime Minister chooses time and time again to defend his long-time political friend and his hand-picked chief of defence staff.

Why has the Prime Minister decided to defend his political friends instead of the reputation and morale of the Canadian Armed Forces?

[Department Of National Defence, September 17th, 1996]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday the Prime Minister said that the defence minister and General Boyle had his full support.

He said this despite the revelations of the Somalia inquiry, despite General Boyle's document fixing and buck passing, and despite the defence minister condoning these activities.

Why does the Prime Minister continue to support the things that are wrong in the Canadian military: cover-up, lack of leadership, lack of accountability at the top, by refusing to fire the defence minister and General Boyle immediately?

[Department Of National Defence, September 16th, 1996]

Mr. Speaker, evasion and doing nothing seem to be the Prime Minister's answer to every difficult problem.

He has done nothing to roll back the national debt, which will to hit $600 billion in a few weeks. He has done nothing to provide Canadians with much needed tax relief. He has done nothing on national unity except hand out free flags. He is doing nothing now to restore the morale of the Canadian Armed Forces or the confidence of people in their own military.

Will the Prime Minister do something? Will he act to restore some integrity and accountability in the Canadian Armed Forces by asking General Boyle and the Minister of National Defence to resign?

[Department Of National Defence, September 16th, 1996]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister is probably the only one with confidence in the defence minister and the chief of defence staff.

He is aware that these individuals do not have the confidence of the rank and file of Canadian Armed Forces personnel. Major General Addy made that perfectly clear just hours after hanging up his career uniform. They certainly do not have the confidence of the Canadian public, which many of us have found out in visiting with our constituents.

Will the Prime Minister explain to the House why he continues to have confidence in the Minister of National Defence when the Canadian public and the armed forces personnel do not?

[Department Of National Defence, September 16th, 1996]

Mr. Speaker, all the evidence presented to the Somalia inquiry indicates gross mismanagement at the top of the Department of National Defence, yet Canadians have seen General Boyle blaming subordinates and passing the buck instead of taking full responsibility. Then they watched the Minister of National Defence strongly endorse his hand picked chief of defence staff even before General Boyle had completed his evasive testimony.

At the same time, both of these people, the Minister of National Defence and the chief of defence staff, maintain that they enjoy the full confidence of the government and the Prime Minister.

Do the minister and the chief of defence staff have the complete support and confidence of the Prime Minister, yes or no?

[Pearson International Airport, June 20th, 1996]

I withdraw the words, Mr. Speaker.

Where are the resignations, not the excuses, that will convince Canadians that political interference in infrastructure development, in purchasing and in due process will stop and stop now?

[Pearson International Airport, June 20th, 1996]

Mr. Speaker, I will withdraw the words but we continue to worry about why the words offend the House but what they represent do not.

[Pearson International Airport, June 20th, 1996]

Mr. Speaker, what we have here is a huge infrastructure project of vital importance to Ontario and to Canada knocked completely off the rails by political interference.

In the Airbus case we have the Liberals trying to use the justice department to go after a political opponent. In this case we have the Liberals trying to deny both their friends and their political opponents access to the courts. This is political corruption of the sleaziest kind, and Canadians want resignations-