Amid a political firestorm over comments made by Gen. Tom Lawson about the causes of sexual harassment in the military, Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau says Lawson should be dismissed as chief of the defence staff.

“Gen. Lawson’s comments yesterday were completely unacceptable, his excuse was completely inadequate. Gen. Lawson should be immediately dismissed,” Trudeau said at a press conference in Ottawa.

In an interview with CBC News Tuesday night, Lawson told host Peter Mansbridge that sexual harassment in the Canadian Armed Forces is a result of men’s “biological wiring.”

NDP Leader Tom Mulcair said today that even if Lawson resigns early over the comments, it would not fix the broader cultural problem when it comes to sexual misconduct within the armed forces.

“What Gen. Lawson said is completely wrong and totally unacceptable. He has apologized, he’s leaving in a couple of weeks but if only the problem were as simple as the departure of one general,” Mulcair said following the NDP caucus meeting Wendesday morning. “The real problem is that no one is working for change in the culture in the military on the issue of sexual harassment.”

While Lawson quickly apologized after the CBC segment aired, it didn’t take long for critics to begin calling for him to step down early from the position as chief of defence staff.

Liberal defence critic Joyce Murray was one of them, saying Lawson should resign because his comments “normalize” sexual harassment.

“He should step down now,” she said. “We need leadership of the Canadian armed forces that is prepared to take sexual harassment and abuse in the military seriously and is going to be communicating that clearly to the public and to the members of the armed forces.”

Murray said the comments explain why the recent report into sexual misconduct in the military is not being taken more seriously.

Lawson is scheduled to retire in a few weeks and is to be replaced by Gen. Jonathan Vance.

When asked how he would change the culture of sexual harassment in the military, Mulcair pointed to his time as president of the Quebec Professionals Board when he was one of the leaders of a “complete cultural change” in how sexual harassment complaints were handled.

“We changed the law, we changed the way the law was applied and how it was understood,” he said. “So you can do that and this is what we would propose to do as well as a government — we would work with senior military leaders to make sure that everything in Justice Deschamps report isn’t just paid lip service but it actually becomes real.”

Lawson appeared to have few defenders in the Conservative caucus Wednesday — Transport Minister Lisa Raitt said she was “at a loss for words” when she heard the general’s comments.

“It is not something that I appreciate in senior management,” she said bluntly.

Justice Minister Peter MacKay, who was defence minister when Lawson was appointed chief of defence staff, also wasn’t defending Lawson.

“I feel badly about the way he used that language.”

Finance Minister Joe Oliver, however, said he does not believe Lawson’s comments mean he doesn’t take sexual harassment in the military seriously.

“He has apologized for it and I think that was the appropriate thing to do,” he said. “It is clear that his intention is to get rid of harassment.”

With files from Elizabeth Thompson