Chaps,
A good discussion, no doubt about it. However, I was more concerned at the MOD Centre level, not on individual units, or the interface between say Wg Cdr and Sqn Ldr. This is extremely well defined, though obviously in practice it is a little more blurry than one might imagine.
My query is basically this. The Military is the instrument (or victim, depending on viewpoint) of the policy of the government of the day. If the top brass disagree, then what? As I said originally, I would not foresee a CM ensuing, where a junior officer or airman/soldier/sailor would most certainly be hung out to dry.