Mr. Casey, I come from Lévis. Lévis is the heart of the Desjardins Group. That is the largest employer in my region. As a guy from that region, I have always been concerned about whether Desjardins was going to move to Montreal. That was one of my concerns. That is why the first thing I said when I went to Charlottetown was that the headquarters of Veterans Affairs Canada was there to stay. That is very clear in my mind.
As you know, the people from Prince Edward Island have outstanding qualities and, as a result, they are providing veterans with great services. Is there a need to continue to improve? Yes. Will changes be made? Yes.
Having said that, most of the Veterans Affairs Canada workforce—we are talking about almost one-third of veterans who are the manpower of Veterans Affairs Canada—is in Charlottetown, and the adjustments will be proportionate to the territory as a whole. So yes, absolutely. It is important.
I also feel that Veterans Affairs Canada is a model for the federal public service; it shows that a department can provide services even when its head office is decentralized.
Is there a need to continue to improve and to adapt to new needs? Yes. That is what we are going to do; that is the challenge that we are going to face.
Mr. Casey, you are obviously aware that, over the past decades, Veterans Affairs Canada has had an aging clientele; we now have the modern-day veterans who come back sometimes with mental health issues and physical problems, and that is why we are undergoing changes, we have to adapt to those needs.