Thank you.
There's an important consideration when we're looking at the family caregiver relief benefit. Our belief is that the government is reinventing the wheel and that in the Pension Act we effectively have had an attendance allowance provision for many decades. The attendance allowance provision has been very beneficial to traditional veterans and their families where there's a caregiver need.
Certainly from our perspective—my other hat is that of chair of the executive committee of the War Amps of Canada—the traditional war amp found that the attendant's allowance provision was critical as he grew older and depended more on a caregiver, whether it was a spouse or family member. That in itself will provide $15,000 to $20,000 of tax-free money to a veteran and his family under the provisions of the Pension Act, which I think we should borrow for the purposes of the new Veterans Charter.
I would also suggest—and I appreciate your giving me this opportunity, Mr. Valeriote—that the DND policy of the attendant care benefit program is extremely important. It's part of their legacy of care program, which is excellent. We have a number of young amputees and their wives who are benefiting from this program. It provides as much as $3,000 a month or $36,000 a year. When you compare that to the family caregiver relief benefit of $7,200, there's a concern. Quite frankly, why should we reinvent the wheel when we already have benefits that will work and will be more fulsome and more comprehensive for the family?
Thank you.