Thank you.
I was feeling very hopeful for Luc and myself, thinking we would get more time, but that's okay.
Minister, first of all, I just want to thank you for the commitment to looking at how to get authorization for MPs to support veterans more quickly. I think that will help. I know that these wait times are terrible and I couldn't agree more with what Cathay said. The reality is that veterans are struggling profoundly, and I know she gets those calls from across Canada, just as I do, and it's very concerning.
I have talked to you as well about the fact that some veterans are making the decision, based on what they've heard from Liberal folks who are saying, “Apply for the CERB. It doesn't matter. We'll figure out the details on the other side.” They are doing that out of desperation because they've been waiting so long for their disability pensions to come in. They are poor, struggling folks, and they have served our country, and we certainly don't want that happening.
I thank you for the commitment around the authorization.
I am going to ask as well about what we can do to improve MPs' access to Veterans Affairs. With a lot of other departments, there are specific lines for MPs to access support. The departments work closely with our offices to help people, and we want to do more, but we need those support lines for MPs' offices and things like that to be put into place. I'm just wondering if you would help us with that as well.