Veterans Affairs committee  There is no differentiation in the entitlement, to what they are entitled. When I look at the statistics, I see that 89% did not know they were able to participate or have access to Veterans Affairs Canada benefits. That tells me I have a problem. They had the same entitlement a

Veterans Affairs committee  I'm not sure. I'm sorry.

Veterans Affairs committee  As I say, depending on the type of contract they are engaged on—class A, B, C reservists—I would assume they are considered part of the reserve so they would be eligible for the same types of benefits.

Veterans Affairs committee  As I said earlier, I think it's going to depend on proximity, operational tempo, the pace. I think those are all going to be deciding factors. I wouldn't step in that lane. I think it's best left for those who work the ground every day to determine what those ratios should be.

Veterans Affairs committee  I think the first thing we need to start doing is make sure our Canadian ranger instructors are well resourced and they have the ability to get out and take the time to determine what that looks like. It's a job for the chain of command for sure.

Veterans Affairs committee  That's a class A reserve type of contract. It's a minimum attendance, 12 times a year. Then there are other rangers who will be on class B, less than 180 days, and class B, greater than 180 days. As for the pay, Robyn....

Veterans Affairs committee  I think I've said it all. My caution again is let's make sure we're listening. Let's make sure we don't look at the storefront. Let's go in through the door. Let's talk to people on the ground. All our information came from actual rangers sitting in a circle, talking to them,

Veterans Affairs committee  Thank you, Mr. Chair. Ladies and gentlemen, as many of you are aware, I've decided to retire from this position as of October 31 of this year. The reasons for this departure are both personal and professional. Therefore, this will likely be the last time I appear before this com

Veterans Affairs committee  The message from me personally would be this: Let's give the ranger instructors the resources they need so that they can go and do what needs to be done on the ground—spending time with their patrols, educating their patrols, and helping them if there should be an illness or inju

Veterans Affairs committee  First of all, I want to go back and make a point. They do participate in military operations, such as search and rescue, surveillance on the land, those types of things. Those are militarily instructed functions. That puts them into that fray. To go back to my earlier response,

Veterans Affairs committee  The responsibility for the rangers clearly falls within the Canadian Armed Forces. The chief of the defence staff determines what the priorities are on staffing and the allocation of resources. That's all within the purview of his authority.

Veterans Affairs committee  Well, I'll let you ask the Minister of National Defence if they have the resources. When I look at the plan to increase the rangers, that comes with a cost behind it. That has been costed forward. Has it been funded? I'm not privy to that information. It comes down again to th

Veterans Affairs committee  It's a bit of both. Basically the rangers are all the same type; the groups are the same. Their overarching training and information sharing is the same. There may be anomalies across different CRPGs because of the remoteness of a community or the position of a community, or

Veterans Affairs committee  As I say, when the ranger is elected into the patrol, there is a review of whether the individual is physically and psychologically fit, a series of questions, and watching their physical activity. I would caution again that rules that work south of 60 don't work so well north

Veterans Affairs committee  There are 5,000 in total.