Evidence of meeting #34 for Veterans Affairs in the 41st Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was affairs.

A recording is available from Parliament.

On the agenda

MPs speaking

Also speaking

Maureen Sinnott  Director, Strategic and Enabling Initiatives, Department of Veterans Affairs
Raymond Lalonde  Director General, Operational Stress Injuries National Network, Department of Veterans Affairs
Derek Sullivan  Director General, Canada Remembers Division, Department of Veterans Affairs
Gord Jenkins  President, NATO Veterans Organization of Canada
Robert O'Brien  Chairman, Board of Directors, Canadian Association of Veterans in United Nations Peacekeeping
Jarrott Holtzhauer  Vice-President, Plans and Policy, NATO Veterans Organization of Canada
Thurston Kaulbach  Vice-President, Advocacy, NATO Veterans Organization of Canada

5:25 p.m.

Conservative

The Chair Conservative Greg Kerr

Thank you very much, Mr. Jenkins.

We're at time now, and the last slot is Ms. Adams.

5:25 p.m.

Conservative

Eve Adams Conservative Mississauga—Brampton South, ON

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

If I might just correct the record when it comes to St. Anne's hospital, in fact as the transfer over to the Quebec government takes place, Veterans Affairs has made every effort and every commitment to ensure that veterans receive priority access in the language of their choice, and in fact has gone to lengths to ensure that the wonderful care provided by the staff at St. Anne's hospital is recognized and that those nurses and hospital staff are brought on by the Quebec government.

The challenge that we've been facing, of course, is that there are empty beds, there aren't enough veterans to fully occupy those beds, and Quebec citizens need access to that hospital. We're not quite sure why the opposition doesn't think the Quebec government is capable of running a quality hospital. The Conservative government certainly believes the Quebec government is capable of running a quality hospital and providing exceptional care to our veterans.

Mr. Jenkins, in your testimony at the beginning, on page 1, you indicate that in fact your association agrees with the vision for transformation and the five themes that have been chosen. We are in fact now entering a period of time where we have more younger veterans than traditional veterans—the World War Two and the Korean War veterans. We're looking at providing services that will benefit these younger veterans, so their focus, obviously, is some transition to careers as they leave the military and look to civilian life. We've brought in Helmets to Hardhats, and we're looking at providing that type of career transition.

We're also recognizing post-traumatic stress disorder, making sure that we've more than doubled the number of clinics to serve those young veterans, to face the challenges that we now recognize and are more comfortable speaking about than perhaps we were 20, 30, or 50 years ago.

Additionally, we're looking at how we might be able to commemorate and honour the sacrifice of these younger veterans. I think as a nation we've done a respectable job in recognizing the sacrifice of our traditional war veterans, but perhaps there's more work we can do to recognize our younger veterans as they return.

When you go to the Legions, the membership is dwindling, and younger veterans don't feel as comfortable signing up there. They don't have the camaraderie; they don't have the social support network of a community coming together to honour their work. They don't have the social outlet to discuss the challenges they face both in war time and now as they return home.

Could you perhaps give me some insight into what more we might be able to do to commemorate the younger veterans and how we can additionally support them in our communities?

Let me also say that I truly thank you for your service, and we are listening intently. One of our members here, Mr. Chisu, is a member of your association.

5:25 p.m.

President, NATO Veterans Organization of Canada

Gord Jenkins

You've asked about three questions, and I'll try to wrap them up into one.

One is about St. Anne's Hospital. I know the project manager—he's a very close friend, Rick Neville—and his trials and tribulations of handing over the hospital to Quebec. What we're saying is that Mr. Chisu, or myself, or any of the World War II or post-Korean veterans don't get beds. We do not get beds. There are no beds to go to, and there's still a waiting list for World War II.

As for your comment on the Legion, you're quite right. The traditional veterans are very well served. The Legion was and is an excellent organization. The Legion, by the way, is now 80% civilian, and counting, and the same is true for the other two traditional veterans organizations. They still support veterans. They support their base, which is traditional veterans.

Your question on where these people go for help...that is a challenge for this committee. Where would they go for help? There is no place for them to go right now. They have these—what is it?—8 DND and 10 Veterans Affairs places across Canada. Most of them are on bases. Where do they go for help? They can phone Veterans Affairs offices, but they're closing them down, as was described by Mr. Kaulbach, particularly in some of the areas, like Newfoundland and western Ontario.

So, yes, that's a challenge that hopefully this committee can address. Where do the modern vets go? We have no place to go.

5:30 p.m.

Conservative

The Chair Conservative Greg Kerr

Thank you, Mr. Jenkins. We are actually past 5:30, so we have to cut off our time.

I do want to thank the witnesses for coming and sharing their views with us today—candid, as always. Certainly the committee will reflect carefully on what you've said.

Folks, that's it until our next meeting. We're adjourned. Thank you.