The first comment I have regarding these new announcements is that I do give the minister credit for at least proactively involving himself in the staffing question.
One of the concerns we have had, Mr. Chairman, is that as a veterans community we have been told over the last number of years that staff cuts, closure of district offices, and so on are fine, that effectively we can take care of the load of work that comes forward and of the applications from veterans. Now we're learning in the year 2015 that we're short.
Mr. Valeriote, whether we're short 100 or 200, we need new case managers, and we need new adjudicating staff members, after a period of time when we were told as a veterans community that these things would not be necessary.