Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Welcome, Minister and Ms. Chaput.
Mr. Minister, your last comment brought some context to the challenges that Veterans Affairs has been facing. We went from the end of the Korean War some 50 years ago to our involvement in an active theatre of conflict in Afghanistan. I would suggest that for maybe 50 years Veterans Affairs was dealing with something they were very familiar with, and then all of a sudden there is a whole new set of challenges that they're faced with. Given the magnitude of the challenges of the modern-day conflict, I think Veterans Affairs have done an outstanding job and they've reacted to the change.
Mr. Minister, I want to applaud you for the leadership you've shown, and, Ms. Chaput, for the recognition that you folks have shown, in the need to go into a transitional change, to streamline and to use our dollars more effectively in the areas of need. I think you're doing that.
I know Minister Flaherty mentioned some additional moneys for Veterans Affairs in his economic statement. Could you perhaps tell us what the amount was that was allocated for veterans and armed forces benefits, and how that money is going to be spent? Could you give us some idea of how helpful that would be?