I think the new Veterans Charter in principle was written with the approach necessary to get some of the CF veterans to make that transition. During the Senate testimony that occurred before they passed it in the Senate, in May of last year, it was pointed out that the charter has a huge gap in not dealing with the veterans who most need help and who are the most disabled. That gap has still not been addressed.
There has been a commission of what's called a special needs advisory group. To date there is no mention of that group on the website and there is no mention in the Salute! newspaper that goes out to veterans. There is no way to contact them if someone wants to make a representation, the minutes are kept confidential, and they are sworn to confidentiality. We have no idea what's being discussed in terms of monitoring those special needs.
In terms of rehabilitation, I think the big question about the Veterans Charter has to be, at what point does bureaucratic efficiency in making sure that money is not being wasted cross the line and force veterans into compromising positions?
I don't think veterans should have to be forced into the workplace in order to receive benefits. I don't think we should have that kind of mistrust of veterans. I think we should trust that they will be ready to work when they're ready. All the veterans I know who are disabled are very upset if they are unable to work, and they do everything possible. I don't think there's a question of them trying to defraud the government. I think putting that conditional workfare on veterans to receive benefits is unconscionable.