Yes, it doesn't say it anywhere on here.
The other one here....
First of all, Mr. McColeman talked about the benefit of doubt clause being applied in some cases. Of all the VRAB decisions that come on my desk that I have seen on veterans I've worked on for the last 12 years, I have yet to see the benefit of doubt clause applied to any VRAB decision that I have ever worked on. Where it happens I don't know, because they constantly ask. You have to have new medical information in order to do this. But that's not necessarily Veterans Charter stuff. That's a bone I have to pick with them.
But here we talk about the complication of the forms. Now just picture this: you're in a LAV and six of your buddies are killed, two are severely injured, and you're injured. You have PTSD like we couldn't comprehend. You're now asked to fill out this form within 120 days, it says. We've heard testimony that sometimes the forms sit on a table for months. They just can't touch it. They don't want to go near it.
The first question is, why the 120-day limit?
Secondly, a lot of veterans say that every single member of Parliament uses them for photo ops--and that includes us, too--and say they're the greatest Canadians, and everything else. Yet on the bottom of this declaration, and I don't even have to do this for my mortgage or a line of credit or anything else that I get to do, it says, “I declare that the information provided here is, to the best of my knowledge, true and complete and knowing that it has the same force and effect as if made under oath.”
The veterans I've talked to who have to fill out a form of this nature ask why they are being treated with suspicion. This is how they think because of their mental state. They're heroes of Canada, yet when they fill out a form seeking assistance it's like it's made under oath. It's like they're under suspicion. This is part of the problem these forms have.
And by the way, I can fill out these forms, but if I had a severe disability, as my friend Rick Casson had to fill out.... It says to fill out section D, F, G, or D, E, G. A person under mental strain is going to have great difficulty doing that. Plus, you say attach this form, attach that form, do this, do that. A guy's got to go through hoops to fill out this document. This is not simplistic enough, and I'm being frank and honest.
For a person who is mentally stable, this is not a problem. This is just a process and you do it and on you go. But for someone suffering, and their family is suffering, this is not helpful, even if someone is on the phone walking you through it. So as a suggestion to you, is there any way these forms can be looked at to simplify them and to put the trust back into the veteran? The veteran is not applying for something they don't think they deserve. They're applying because they believe they deserve this.
So if you could comment on that, it would be greatly appreciated. These two forms over here are fairly straightforward, but these two over here for the lost benefits and for the rehabilitation program, I would definitely include families and children on that. And also, there should be a form here asking if this information can be released to your family. It doesn't say that. But I'll just leave that with you.
Thank you.