Veterans Affairs  Mr. Speaker, I appreciate my hon. colleague's question, but when his party was in power, it fired a thousand employees and cut investments to Veterans Affairs. We have invested over $340 million to make sure we address the backlog. We have made sure and will continue to make sure that veterans receive appropriate remuneration for the great service they provide to this country.

Questions on the Order Paper  Mr. Speaker, in response to (a), veterans are not required to inform Veterans Affairs Canada, VAC, of their intentions to use medical assistance in dying, MAID, in advance, and their spouses, families and legal representatives are under no obligation to inform VAC of a veteran’s decision following their passing.

Veterans Ombudsman  Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 32(2), I have the honour to table, in both official languages, the Veterans Ombudsman's annual report for 2021-22.

Carbon Pricing  Mr. Speaker, anybody who witnessed Fiona in Atlantic Canada would understand there truly has to be measures taken. This government has taken measures to make sure that we will be able to live in Atlantic Canada. In fact, the heat pump announcement is a very important part of making sure we help Atlantic Canadians heat their homes this winter.

Carbon Pricing  Mr. Speaker, we had a prime example in Prince Edward Island of what will happen if we do not continue to address climate change. We had massive destruction, with winds over 200 kilometres an hour destroying our wharves and over half our softwood forests. We have to continue to make sure we address the climate change.

Veterans  Madam Speaker, I am surprised to get that question from my hon. colleague. The fact is that we have a new contract that will go into effect at the end of November. There will be 9,000 health professionals in 600 locations across the country. What we are doing as a government is providing the services for veterans where veterans need the services.

Veterans  Madam Speaker, again, I am surprised to receive the question from my hon. colleague. In fact, what we are doing is taking two contracts and putting them into one. We are making sure that we have 9,000 health professionals across the country in 600 different areas to ensure veterans can receive rehab and health services in towns, cities and rural areas across the country.

Questions on the Order Paper  Mr. Speaker, with regard to part (a) of the question, since April 2020, the Centre intégré universitaire de Santé et de services sociaux de l’Ouest-de-l’Île-de-Montréal, or CIUSSS-ODIM, has been using the unoccupied Residential Treatment Clinic for Operational Stress Injuries, or RTCOSI site, a space they own and operate, to meet provincial needs that they are funding.

Questions on the Order Paper  Mr. Speaker, as directed by the Minister of Veterans Affairs Canada, Veterans Affairs Canada is conducting a thorough internal investigation on what occurred in August 2022 regarding Veterans Affairs Canada and medical assistance in dying, or MAID. This occurrence is isolated to a single employee and is not indicative of a pattern of behaviour or a systemic issue.

Questions on the Order Paper  Mr. Speaker, Veterans Affairs Canada recognizes that there is interest in using service dogs to assist veterans with mental health conditions. At this time, Veterans Affairs Canada does not directly provide any coverage for service dogs used for mental health conditions. However, Veterans Affairs Canada continues to review new studies and research to determine its future approach to mental health service dogs.

Questions on the Order Paper  Mr. Speaker, case management is a part of the continuum of service at Veterans Affairs Canada. Veterans Affairs Canada provides service based on the needs, risks and complexity of each individual veteran. Case management is a service offered to support veterans with complex unmet needs who are also facing multiple challenges.

Veterans Affairs  Mr. Speaker, my hon. colleague is aware that we are committed to making sure veterans and their spouses have the support they need. We have been working with Statistics Canada and the Canadian Institute for Military and Veteran Health Research to gather information from the survivors.

Questions on the Order Paper  Mr. Speaker, with regard to (a), the benefits navigator was established in 2014. With regard to (b), the benefits navigator was created as a result of Veterans Affairs Canada’s, VAC’s, ongoing efforts to improve veteran access to information about VAC’s benefits and services. The tool provides veterans, Royal Canadian Mounted Police, still serving Canadian Armed Forces members, spouses and survivors with information about the VAC benefits and services that they may qualify for, given their specific situation.

Veterans  Mr. Speaker, I appreciate my hon. colleague's concern. We realize that more needs to be done for francophone veterans. That is why we have established a dedicated francophone unit to improve the situation. We invested $340 million to make sure we are able to improve the wait times.

Veterans Affairs  Mr. Speaker, I thank the Auditor General for her work and welcome her four recommendations. Our investment of $340 million has allowed us to hire hundreds of staff and speed up processes. With that, we have reduced the backlog by 50%, from 23,000 down to just over 10,600. We are on the right path and we will continue on that path to make sure veterans receive their appropriate remuneration.