QUESTION PERIOD — Veterans Affairs
Support Services for Veterans
June 6, 2019
Honourable senators, my question is for the Leader of the Government in the Senate. On this day, when we remember and honour the sacrifice and courage of veterans on the beaches of Normandy 75 years ago, my question concerns our modern-day veterans.
Under the new Pension for Life program at Veterans Affairs Canada, injured veterans entering the system after April 1 will receive less money than those who were already in the system at that date. A report from the Parliamentary Budget Officer released in February also showed that some recent veterans will be worse off under the new pension system.
Senator Harder, why is the government treating our veterans unequally and providing less money to some disabled veterans through the new Pension for Life program?
I thank the honourable senator for the question. Before I get to his question, I think we all would be in alignment with the honourable senator and other senators who spoke on the commemoration of today’s events. It is entirely appropriate that the Senate do so, in recognition of the contributions made by our veterans, their families and their subsequent generations.
I watched some of the ceremony this morning and couldn’t help but be touched by the wheelchairs being wheeled to the beach and the attention being paid, quite rightly, to those who survived, most of whom joined under or close to adult age.
With respect to the question of our support to veterans today, all senators would agree that veterans deserve the appropriate support for their service. That is why the Government of Canada initiated a number of reforms to its support to veterans, including opening up offices across the country that had been closed in order to ensure that veterans’ services would be offered more directly and waiting times could be reduced. It made commitments with respect to the Pension for Life program that have been fulfilled. It continues to look for ways in which our veterans can benefit from other programs, including a broad range of medical services.
That is the objective. I think it’s shared by all senators. It certainly has been reflected in the budgets of this government over the past four years.
The Globe and Mail reported in January that Veterans Affairs did not go through the usual consultation process before introducing the Pension for Life program. For example, there was no public comment period after the regulations were published in the Canada Gazette, Part 2, in August of 2018. The department told The Globe and Mail that the specific reason for exempting prepublication is protected under cabinet confidence.
The government promised Canadians openness and transparency, a promise it has routinely broken.
With that in mind, will the government be open with our veterans and state why it didn’t want to hear from them on this matter?
I thank the honourable senator for the question. I will bring it to the attention of the minister for a more detailed response.
I think it’s not unusual for confidentiality in respect of certain kinds of consultations. That doesn’t undermine a commitment to transparency but rather to ensure that consultations can be done in a meaningful fashion.
