Veterans Affairs Committee on Nov. 3rd, 2011

[Brigadier Barry Le Grys]

The conflicts of the past ten years have made us learn, or relearn, perhaps, that you have to look after your people in service and in transition out of service when that time comes. Whether that's as a result of a life-changing injury or just natural retirement, many of the needs are similar. There's life beyond that, where support may be required too.

I think we're much more aware now of how demanding that “through transition and beyond” piece can be, and how in this modern age it has to be tailored in a manner that we would not have thought of doing 20 or 25 years ago.

In that sense, our approach to seeing people transition through different stages in life is a lot more comprehensive than it was. We still have more to do, I suspect, but we're far more fully aware now than we were.

[Ben Lobb, Conservative, Huron—Bruce, ON]

I wonder if you can tell the committee a little more about Armed Forces Day. I can't remember if you mentioned the date it is held, but just give a little more about how it came to be, the number of people who participate, and how long the lead-up is to Armed Forces Day.

[Brigadier Barry Le Grys]

It came about four years ago. The first was in Chatham, then it went to Cardiff, then to Edinburgh, and it will be in Plymouth next year. It's normally on a weekend in June, and normally centred on the Saturday.

Whether it's in the flagship city or any other community that wishes to support Armed Forces Day, there tends to be more of a remembrance theme in the morning, and then in the afternoon there's more of a celebratory theme. There are displays, events for charity, parades, services, fly-pasts, and parties in the evening put on in a large stadium. There's sort of a tournament tattoo-type feel. That's normally the way the day pans out.

It's a good opportunity for charities to fundraise. It's a good opportunity to get a message across to the public about what service people, past and present, do and have done.

I wouldn't say there's a lot of lead-up to it. It's very much centred on the day, but obviously there is promotion of events and use of the day to work up messages to gather maximum engagement on the day. Sunday follows with some more solemn events to round off the weekend.

[The Chair, Conservative, Greg Kerr]

Thank you very much.

We ran over a bit there, but I certainly didn't want to cut you off.

Now we'll go to Mr. Casey for five minutes.

[Sean Casey, Liberal, Charlottetown, PE]

Good morning.

I've read that in both the United States and Great Britain, a decision has been made at the highest level to exempt veterans from the budget cuts that the governments need to make in order to balance their budgets. Do I have that right?

[Brigadier Barry Le Grys]

No, I don't think so. I'm trying to think what it is, as a stand-alone piece in budgetary terms, that one would look to cut in terms of U.K. veterans.

But, please, I think you wanted to continue your question.

[Sean Casey, Liberal, Charlottetown, PE]

Well, no, if the premise is wrong, I'll leave it at that. I am aware that the United States has decided that in their budget balancing exercise they're not going to cut veterans. I thought a similar pronouncement had come out of Great Britain, but if I'm mistaken, that's fine.

[Brigadier Barry Le Grys]

I think we're probably in a different place. We have our National Health Service that provides for all of the community. Their pensions, disability allowances, and so forth will remain. Whether there are changes to those in the future, one cannot forecast. We're having quite a thorough overhaul of pensions and allowances in the U.K. for all of the public sector. There may be a change in the future, but what's in place now will be protected.

We do tend to be, because of our welfare state, in a different place to where the United States is. So I would say the intention would be to protect their current pensions, allowances, and so forth, but I'm not aware of a full statement or identification of specific pieces to be protected.

[Sean Casey, Liberal, Charlottetown, PE]

Okay.

Specifically on commemoration, I heard you say that the idea of an Armed Forces Day is fairly new. Aside from that one example, has commemoration changed significantly in recent years? Do you feel that it's being well done or that there are challenges going forward?

[Brigadier Barry Le Grys]

I think there has been an increase in recent years. For example, communities and cities are far more inclined to say they have a local regiment, it has freedom of the city, and they'd like a freedom parade. Whether that's when they return from Afghanistan or some other point that seems worthy of commemoration, that parade takes place. We're seeing far more of those being sought than perhaps we would have seen 10 years ago. So yes, there's definitely an increase in awareness.

Are things being done better? I think the armed forces and local communities are better aware of how they lock into one another and how they work with one another to coordinate such things. That's really come about by this growth in awareness and civilian recognition being more universal.

[Sean Casey, Liberal, Charlottetown, PE]

Are you currently stationed in Canada?

[Brigadier Barry Le Grys]

Yes, I'm based at the British High Commission.

[Sean Casey, Liberal, Charlottetown, PE]

And how long has that been?

[Brigadier Barry Le Grys]

It's been just over a year, but I've been in and out of Canada for many years.

[Sean Casey, Liberal, Charlottetown, PE]

If you've been in and out of Canada for many years, you would have some experience and some appreciation for the manner in which we commemorate veterans.

[Brigadier Barry Le Grys]

Yes.

[Sean Casey, Liberal, Charlottetown, PE]

I guess this is a bit of a different twist on Mr. Lobb's question. Given what you've seen of what we do and what you know of what you do, what can we learn from you?

[Brigadier Barry Le Grys]

That's a good question.

[Sean Casey, Liberal, Charlottetown, PE]

It's okay to be brutally frank and critical.

[Brigadier Barry Le Grys]

We've been in partnership by virtue of the likes of Afghanistan, for example. Regarding what I mentioned earlier about this need to support our service people's transition to civilian life, we've been working quite closely with allies on how that's done, trying to work out what people do and what their practices are.

That dialogue over the last few years has been tremendously helpful, I think, to both sides. Although templates don't necessarily cross the Atlantic, the thought processes and some of the thinking and first principles are very helpful in designing how we make these transitions better.

There are a couple of examples of things that are perhaps distinct. For example, you've had the policy of taking bereaved families to Kandahar, if they wished to go, following the loss of one of their own. We don't do that, and there are reasons why we don't.

That's one example of a good practice that everybody speaks very highly of here in Canada. Although we don't think that template would necessarily fit for the U.K., it has influenced our thinking in terms of the way we support the bereaved, outside of that. That's a good example of how we've taken something, thought about its principles, haven't actually done the same thing, but we've learned from it.

[Sean Casey, Liberal, Charlottetown, PE]

Thank you.

[The Chair, Conservative, Greg Kerr]

Thank you very much.

Again, we've gone over time, but it is interesting information and we certainly didn't want to cut it short.

For the last round then, we'll go to Mr. Daniel.

[Joe Daniel, Conservative, Don Valley East, ON]

Thank you for appearing here. I appreciate that.

One of the things that's happening in Canada for sure is that the demise of some of our veterans from the two great wars is increasing daily. The end result is that I think we do not have any veterans left from World War I.

This question is kind of a general one. Have you have changed your value or the intent of how you're going to commemorate World War I now that virtually nobody who participated in it is around?

[Brigadier Barry Le Grys]

Yes. A good example of that, as I mentioned earlier, is the D-Day landing commemoration. We have done some extremely large events at appropriate periods--the 50th, for example, and so on--involving royalty, the Queen notably at the 50th. We are no longer going to do those things, because there are not the veterans to take across the channel in numbers for us to deem it right to put taxpayers' money into it, and for the Minister of Defence to sponsor it.

In a way, we've sort of moved on. Of course, you collect new conflicts and new aspects to commemoration as you go forward, which we're trying to roll in as we move forward.

So yes, I think we will look at the likes of the First World War. We're now getting to that stage in the Second World War, too. We're getting to the point where there are very few Battle of Britain pilots left, for example. That will be the next piece that we move on.

“Official closure” is not quite the right term, but with official sponsorship there will be a different approach. It will become very much one of pure remembrance and less of the physical engagement and any aspect of...a recognition of achievement, perhaps; more remembrance, more solemn.

[Joe Daniel, Conservative, Don Valley East, ON]

Right.

Changing the subject a little bit, I'm just looking to see how you are integrating the commemoration of veterans with some of the youth that are around. The youth don't seem to have the same respect for some of the commemorative sites, etc., that exist.

I'm just wondering how you engage the youth or younger people in commemoration.