This is for Mr. Harris or Mr. Roy.
I got to sit briefly at the veterans affairs committee. One key issue we were dealing with at the time was the contracting out of services for social workers and case workers for veterans dealing with a number of issues. That transition is part of it, but having that consistent case worker was so key to being able to help specific veterans go through potentially difficult transitions, difficult times and difficult points in their lives.
It's now been about six months since a $570-million contract was awarded to Loblaw for veterans rehabilitation services. In fact, some of the medical health clinicians from Renfrew County wrote an op-ed to the department based on the major problems of that contract.
They said that the Veterans Affairs' “approach fails to understand the complexity of treating military-related trauma and demonstrates a universal lack of understanding of veterans' complex mental-health challenges.” It goes on to say that, “The PCVRS program appears to prioritize administrative processes over client care, being overly focused on timelines and rushing treatments, rather than understanding veterans' unique needs and the importance of a culturally competent approach.” They ended the letter by saying that, “We are not saving taxpayers' money; we're offering less, and lining the pockets of a private company.”
Can you talk about what consultations occurred? Were those frontline service providers who are core to that service provision consulted? What did they have to say at the time?