Six groups were consulted, sequestered in a room, given the briefing, and told to sign a letter of confidentiality. There was no extensive consultation like there was for the Pension Act in 1921. It was created in the 1940s.
This is a bureaucratic bill. It was created by VAC bureaucrats, handed to Minister Albina Guarnieri at the time, and she ran with it. She dropped it on the flight to the 60th anniversary of D-Day, when all the parties, including the Bloc, were on the aircraft. There was no veterans consultation, and if we were asked, it was disguised. When it came out, I said, “Where the hell did this come from?” I was heavily into monitoring veterans situations at that time. The first time I read about the new Veterans Charter being implemented, it was like, “Surprise!”