Veterans Affairs Committee on March 24th, 2015

[Steven Clark]

I wouldn't say that we need more training. What we need to have is more communication, so that we can get the information about the services available to these veterans out to the members. That's something that our 1,400 service officers do locally; they reach out and search out individuals.

[Frank Valeriote, Liberal, Guelph, ON]

Have you taken a poll or done a study of how many of your first applications are successful as opposed to those declined and for which you then you have to appeal?

[Carolyn Gasser]

No, we haven't, but I believe they are fairly similar to those for Veterans Affairs Canada and the VRAB.

[Frank Valeriote, Liberal, Guelph, ON]

Okay. Now I want to ask Kimberly a question.

I want to thank you for your evidence. I was moved by it. I think of Jenny Migneault, who came to my office and talked to me about her circumstances.

What I'm feeling is that there are gaps between the services you guys offer, the services the Legion offers.... There are so many people out there trying to fill all these gaps, but nobody is aligning and harmonizing all the services that should be made available to our veterans.

Do you see a role through Veterans Affairs Canada to bring all of you together in some way under the same roof to see what organizations are out there and how you can better align the services you might offer, so that the Legion can go to you under certain circumstances or you can align yourself with the Legion under certain circumstances so that our veterans are better served?

[Kimberly Davis]

Well, having Veterans Affairs bring us all together is good because we all hit different areas. Our main focus is families, and a lot of the other organizations out there are focusing on the veteran or the serving member being released.

[Frank Valeriote, Liberal, Guelph, ON]

Is the family getting enough support?

[Kimberly Davis]

No.

[Frank Valeriote, Liberal, Guelph, ON]

Has Veterans Affairs Canada made an effort to offer that support to integrate families into the treatment process?

[Kimberly Davis]

They are trying. As an example, my husband was in the rehabilitation vocational program with Veterans Affairs. He is now totally and permanently impaired, so he no longer qualifies for vocational rehab because he no longer has the ability to be rehabilitated. I'm able to take advantage of that program and take his vocational rehab and go back to school.

One of the challenges, when they bring these applications in and with the timeframe you were talking about, is that if you send it to the average person or the average family out there, they look at this paperwork and it's like Greek to them. The challenge is that they have to not only decipher through—

[Frank Valeriote, Liberal, Guelph, ON]

Can you send the balance of your response in writing, as the chair suggested?

[Kimberly Davis]

Sure.

[The Chair, Conservative, Royal Galipeau]

Mr. Lizon, you have four minutes.

[Wladyslaw Lizon, Conservative, Mississauga East—Cooksville, ON]

Thank you very much, Mr. Chair.

Thank you to all the witnesses for coming here this morning.

The first question I have is for Mr. Clark. In your presentation you mentioned that you would like to see, in certain circumstances, mandatory family participation or attendance. I understand the reason for it, but on the other hand anything that's made mandatory may create problems because sometimes the individual situation may prevent the family from attending the process.

Therefore, can you comment on that? I think there should be flexibility there. The idea is good but maybe it doesn't apply to all cases.

[Steven Clark]

Absolutely. I agree that the family does need to be involved whenever possible. But there will be those situations where it is not possible, for one reason or another, so there has to be that flexibility to accommodate an individual family situation. It can't be as strict and regimented as yes and no. We encourage it and we'd like to see it, but we realize there will be exceptions.

[Wladyslaw Lizon, Conservative, Mississauga East—Cooksville, ON]

Also, you did mention that homelessness is a problem.

This committee did travel to a few places. One of them was the Good Shepherd Ministries in Toronto. There was a pilot project that the Legion was involved with. Can you perhaps tell the committee what the success rate is and where we are now?

[Steven Clark]

The success rate varies from province to province. Some have very well-established homeless veterans programs, while others are just getting under way. The Legion has committed a half a million dollars to assist with programs across the country and our provincial commands will match that, so that means there is potentially $1 million to address the issue.

But with regard to its success, I don't have statistics—unless you have those, Carolyn. We will make sure we forward those to the clerk, so you have that detail.

[Wladyslaw Lizon, Conservative, Mississauga East—Cooksville, ON]

Thank you.

The last question to you is this. If you had to name the biggest challenges you have in this work, helping veterans in their transition, what would they be?

[Steven Clark]

It is communication.

[Wladyslaw Lizon, Conservative, Mississauga East—Cooksville, ON]

But communication in what sense? We do hear it and the committee has heard before that there is a problem with communications. Therefore, if there are concrete measures that should be taken, what would they be? We've been talking about this as gaps in communications. What should be done to address the issue?

[Steven Clark]

One of the issues would be, in fact, that transition interview, so that information on resources available—either coordinated through Veterans Affairs or through the individual associations that provide that assistance—and those details could be passed on to the serving members and their families, if available. But we really need to focus on the transition interview to make sure that information is passed on.

In the SCAN seminars, as well, lots of excellent information is passed on, but again they are optional for a releasing member, not mandatory.

If we can get these individuals to participate in either these interviews or SCAN seminars earlier so that the knowledge starts to be imparted on an earlier basis, well ahead of time, that would certainly assist with their transition as well.

[The Chair, Conservative, Royal Galipeau]

Thank you very much, Mr. Clark.

Mr. Donnelly, you have three minutes. You'll have to be a fast talker.

[Fin Donnelly, NDP, New Westminster—Coquitlam, BC]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Following your lead, I should disclose that I am a member of the Coquitlam Legion 263, and also my mother-in-law served in the air force during the Second World War.

Thank you to all of our witnesses for being here this morning.

I have one question that I'd like to ask all three of our witnesses. Do you agree with the idea that there exists a moral, legal, fiduciary, and social obligation between the people and the Government of Canada to provide equitable financial compensation and support services to past and active members of the armed forces who have been injured, disabled, or have died as a result of military service, and to their dependents, which the Government of Canada is obligated to fulfill?

Perhaps the Legion members can start.

[Carolyn Gasser]

One of the recommendations we've put forward is that it should be instituted in the new veterans charter as it was in the Pension Act.

[Fin Donnelly, NDP, New Westminster—Coquitlam, BC]

Thank you.

[Dr. Stéphanie Bélanger]

There is a social covenant and this is what started the research institute. It is being studied as well in military ethics studies. There is lots of evidence of that social covenant existing in every country where the government will task people with a clause of unlimited liability, and because of this clause there is an obligation to serve back.