Veterans Affairs committee  We do not have a separate department for veterans affairs.

Veterans Affairs committee  We have a minister within the Ministry of Defence, so his portfolio includes—

Veterans Affairs committee  Well, if you have questions by e-mail, we can see what we can do with some of the specific points we can pick up.

Veterans Affairs committee  Again, you're welcome.

Veterans Affairs committee  No, that's tax-free.

Veterans Affairs committee  In detail, it's slightly different. In the old scheme, the armed forces pension scheme we call AFPS 75, officers could receive an immediate pension after serving 16 years beyond the age of 21. So the earliest you could get a pension would be around age 37. You could start accruin

Veterans Affairs committee  In the old scheme, it was up to a maximum of 50% of the pension. Under the new scheme, it's up to two-thirds.

Veterans Affairs committee  It was in 2005. So those still serving in 2005 were given a choice: stay under the old scheme or switch to the new one. One of the significant changes in the new scheme was enhanced dependants' benefits—a higher death-in-service lump sum, higher-percentage pensions, and retention

Veterans Affairs committee  If a single person were to die in service, then there would only be a lump sum, either to the estate or to someone who had been nominated. Neither scheme pays out if there is no dependant, apart from the lump sum. The amount of that lump sum is a calculation based on the amount o

Veterans Affairs committee  Yes, but there would be no ongoing income stream. Where there is a spouse or dependent children, if they were nominated, they would get the lump sum and the income stream as well.

Veterans Affairs committee  Let's say that this was a private soldier who finished basic training and was earning about £18,000 a year. The lump sum would be four times that, which is £72,000. I'm not sure what that is in Canadian dollars. This would be the lump sum that would go to the estate. If the death

Veterans Affairs committee  I can certainly do that. I won't go into detail, but we use what is clinically recognized as post-traumatic stress disorder. We have found that even among medical professionals who aren't perhaps trained in psychiatric matters, it's a label that's easy to choose. If someone has a

Veterans Affairs committee  I'm not sure that I understood the last question. I'm quite happy with the other points, but I'm not quite sure I understood the last point. Could we come back to it?

Veterans Affairs committee  Right. The first point is that there are no military hospitals in the United Kingdom—none, not even for in-service soldiers. In the U.K., primary care is provided by military personnel. Overseas, for example, we have deployed field hospitals in Afghanistan and Iraq. That is mor

Veterans Affairs committee  It's very difficult to make precise comparisons because the package of benefits is different. Broadly speaking, the arrangements aren't that different. For most injuries there is little difference, but the package of benefits is different. The war pension scheme only provides its