I move amendment No. 13 :—
To delete sub-section (4).
We have already discussed something relating to this on the previous amendment. In the organisation of the Department of Defence, the Minister is the head and he has his principal military officers, each of whom is head of a particular branch, the Chief of Staff being head of the branch of the Chief of Staff, the Adjutant-General being head of the branch of the Adjutant-General and the Quartermaster-General being head of the branch of the Quartermaster-General. Each of these three officers is independent and is responsible direct to the Minister and the Minister co-ordinates. That is his duty. He assigns them such duties as he may wish and generally he controls the administration of the Department in that way. In comparatively recent years an idea grew of giving to the Chief of Staff the co-ordination of certain business, interfering to some extent with the independence—when I say " independence " I mean independence subject to the Minister—of the Adjutant-General and the Quartermaster-General. I can see no reason for that at all.
To vest in the Chief of Staff such powers is to lead to confusion. It checks the Chief of Staff. It does interfere with his duties, which are duties of a very important nature. A Quartermaster-General or an Adjutant-General may object to that type of interference from a person who, in fact, under the administration, is not the boss. I put down the amendment to delete that sub-section because I think it is unnecessary, and it is difficult to visualise the sort of co-ordination that is envisaged in the sub-section. I would certainly very much like to hear the Minister explain the sort of co-ordination that is proposed or envisaged or is likely to take place or may take place under that sub-section.