Evidence of meeting #90 for Veterans Affairs in the 42nd Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was budget.
A video is available from Parliament.
Conservative
Cathay Wagantall Conservative Yorkton—Melville, SK
—who are not medically released but who we know in time could end up with mental health and other issues and not have access?
Liberal
Liberal
Colin Fraser Liberal West Nova, NS
Thank you very much, Mr. Chair. Minister, thank you for being here today. General, thank you for being here. It's always good to see you both.
This committee, in its report on barriers to transition, put forward a recommendation for support for spouses and family members with the challenges they may face through transition. I know that this committee has heard from many folks across the country, including Lieutenant-General (Retired) Roméo Dallaire, who spoke on the importance of including the family and supporting them through the transition piece. I know the great work that military family resource centres do across the country. In fact, on Friday I was in my riding—
Liberal
Colin Fraser Liberal West Nova, NS
—of Greenwood, Nova Scotia, and they were launching the veterans family program and talking about how they were going to do outreach throughout the region to make sure that people were aware of the good services that MFRCs provide. Can you speak to the investments in the estimates today to expand programming already going on at the MFRCs, and to the good work they are doing?
Liberal
Seamus O'Regan Liberal St. John's South—Mount Pearl, NL
I've travelled across the country and visited several of the MFRCs. They are doing extremely good work. As we mentioned earlier, we've expanded access to ensure that there is uninterrupted access to these 32 military family resource centres. This goes, again, to closing the seam.
One of the things that Walt and I heard, tangible things about.... I grew up in 5 Wing Goose Bay and the base gym was kind of the centre of life. We didn't have an MFRC there at the time, but we had the gym and the gym is still a huge thing. So it's not just the MFRCs, but suddenly you're released and you can't go to the gym anymore. This sounds small, but it's where you see your buddies, it's where your wife or your husband may go, and sometimes they are involved with day care, children's activities, and those sorts of things. So it's just about getting rid of that abrupt end, which causes so much anxiety and can lead to a lot of other problems when it comes to transition.
The expansion of services at the MFRCs is a $147-million commitment over six years. In addition, I should add, we're putting $22.4 million over three years to better inform people of the services that are there. Some of that is for paid advertising. Some of that we'll get out through social media and general access points.
We're in the middle today. It's unfortunate that both of these events coincide, but that's how it happens. Today we have a full-day homelessness summit at the Delta Hotel, just down the street. We heard video testimony from one veteran who said, “I didn't know that the supports were always there. They just seemed hidden.” I'm not saying that all the answers are already there. It's just that there are a lot of things, unfortunately, that people don't know about. That is a small portion of it, making sure people are aware these things are available. Where there are MFRCs, though, I expect that word will get out very quickly on bases and in surrounding communities.
Liberal
Colin Fraser Liberal West Nova, NS
Yes. I agree with that. Proactively informing veterans and their families about the services and supports there is important. The MFRCs do a good job, but the outreach they'll able to do through the veterans family program will be helpful.
You touched on the fact that Veterans Affairs is hosting a round table today on veterans homelessness. I know that organizations from right across Canada are here today to speak to that issue. In the main estimates, we see $1 million dedicated to the veterans emergency fund. I'm wondering if you can speak to how this and other programming made available will assist homeless veterans in crisis.
Liberal
Seamus O'Regan Liberal St. John's South—Mount Pearl, NL
At the round table, you have some 70 organizations from across the country—some big, some small, some national in scope or ambition, and others extremely local. I was only there for an hour and a half before we had votes, but I would say that we are not there to talk; we're there to listen. Actually, I think the most exciting part of it is when they talk to one another. We're already seeing that dynamic around the various tables in the room.
Let me run through some of this for you. We have committed $4 million to the veterans emergency fund. As I think I mentioned to this committee before, one of the, I don't know, oddly humbling experiences was in my first brief with the deputy on my first day. The department, despite its vast budget, as members of this committee are well aware, doesn't have the flexibility to actually help an individual when we find out that somebody is homeless. I think members of the committee can take comfort in the fact that every single dollar seems to be earmarked. That's good from a taxpayer's point of view, and I'm happy to see that, but then we don't have flexibility.
We were relying on wills bequeathing funds. People will money for homeless veterans, but often under various conditions and often geographically specific. People want to help people in downtown Winnipeg, or people want to help people in Victoria. One of the deputy's jobs was just to figure out which trust fund or will bequeathment he could find to help a veteran get off the street, which was ridiculous. Now we have that flexibility. Certainly in a 24-7 news cycle, as soon as there's a news report that a veteran has been identified as homeless, everybody around this committee, and any Canadian, would say that we want to get him off the streets right now. Well, at least now we have the ability to act immediately. If they self-identify, we can worry later about where they served or whatever and just get them off of the streets immediately, which I think is really important.
To get back to the homelessness summit, generally speaking, as our colleague Adam Vaughan, parliamentary secretary, spoke to as well, this is getting people out of their silos so that we can really talk effectively about how we deal with this issue in order to eliminate it.
Liberal
Gord Johns NDP Courtenay—Alberni, BC
Thank you.
Minister and Deputy Minister, thank you for being here.
The Veterans Affairs Canada website details the department's risk response strategy. As part of maintaining core services, the department admits the following:
Veterans Affairs Canada may have difficulty providing timely, high quality core services and benefits to Veterans and their families while simultaneously implementing several new initiatives and programs from multiple Federal Budgets.
I want to underscore “core services and benefits”.
Minister, I know that veterans appreciate that your government is trying to address the backlog of applications. However, I've heard from many veterans who are unaware of the benefits they are allowed to receive. You touched on that recently. Similar to the $42.8 million you've given to address the backlog over two years, I want to know your plan, and veterans want to know your plan, with regard to how many resources you need to make sure that veterans know about their benefits. As well, what is it going to take to reduce that backlog to zero? We still do not have an analysis of how you came up with the $42.8 million and what it's going to take.
Liberal
Seamus O'Regan Liberal St. John's South—Mount Pearl, NL
I spoke specifically to the $22 million for communications to veterans, their families, and caregivers to make sure they're aware of the services that are available to them. I'm also keenly aware of the fact that this department, in terms of the benefits and services it provides, is going through an immense transition at the moment.
As I have said to veterans in various town halls, one of my key goals, and it's a personal goal of mine, is that much of what we do, whether it be pension for life, access to MFRCs, or easing transition and closing the seam, is alleviating anxiety. Anxiety can be a trigger for all sorts of things. There's anxiety with wait times and all these sorts of things. The irony is that with all these changes in new benefits and services, we're actually increasing anxiety. I'm hoping that's a temporary effect. It's just a lot of change to happen at once.
NDP
Gord Johns NDP Courtenay—Alberni, BC
My concern is that we're not resourcing what we need just to deal with core services. You're making a lot of promises to bring in new programs and whatnot, and we still haven't addressed the core needs in terms of the services and benefits that veterans need.
We saw huge cuts under the Conservatives in 2012. We're far from that number in terms of full-time staff at Veterans Affairs Canada who deliver services that veterans need. I know you committed this money, this $42.8 million. Is it for temporary jobs, or is it for permanent jobs in this department?
Veterans are concerned that we're going to be here again in two years.
NDP
Gord Johns NDP Courtenay—Alberni, BC
They want to know there are long-term resources that are going to be applied to the department to serve veterans.
Gen (Ret'd) Walter Natynczyk
What's terrific is the fact that veterans are getting over the stigma and are coming forward and asking for help. To see upwards of 20% to 30% more veterans coming forward and presenting is terrific.
We're in a catch-up game. We're trying to catch up, and that's where the backlog is coming from. We're going through the process now of legislation, Treasury Board submission, getting the approval, and then recruit, train, and deploy. There's a lot of concurrent activity right now.
We're anticipating the approvals through legislation. We're anticipating the Treasury Board approvals, because without the approval, I can't spend the money. At the same time, we're creating the pools of those candidates who are coast to coast—
NDP
Gord Johns NDP Courtenay—Alberni, BC
That's a political decision, the government committing long-term resources so that the funding is in place, right?
Gen (Ret'd) Walter Natynczyk
Right.
We're looking for the right Canadians to be able to bring into the front offices. I was just in Brandon and Shilo last week, again looking for folks to be able to serve in Brandon and on Base Shilo with the right skills.
However, the other thing we've learned just over the past two years is through the digital means, using My VAC Account, the fact that we were able to deploy the education and training benefit, as well as the career transition service, in a digital way. We're actually able to encourage folks to use a digital means so that their application and their approvals are much faster.
As the minister indicated, we already have now over 400 veterans who are in the process of getting the grant for education and training, and over 300 veterans in the career transition services program.
The long-term plan is that balance of face to face with great employees, but also digital, where folks can—
NDP
Gord Johns NDP Courtenay—Alberni, BC
I appreciate the innovation and the efforts made to be innovative. When you talk about catch-up, you've identified that it's because more veterans are coming forward, but also you're playing catch-up because there were huge cuts to the department in 2012. Those cuts are going to create a backlog.
What we're hearing is that the department is not adequately resourced to deal with the backlog from 2012. When you have cuts such as that, of course you're going to be cutting in terms of service levels. We saw that with the ratio. The government made a promise to get to 25:1. You're not there yet. What is it going to take to get to those ratios and to get the backlog to zero? We're still not getting those answers.
That's what I'm saying. Again, looking at the website, you have been told by the department that they're going to have difficulty providing core services. I would like to see the department come back with what you need to make sure you're delivering the mandate.
My next question is around the lack of post-traumatic stress injury treatment. We know the significant contributing factor to some recent deaths by suicide of our veterans has been the need for PTSD centres. We heard from veterans loud and clear that they want residential care. We appreciate the new funding that's going into research. Everybody does, and I want to commend the government for that, but we still haven't heard any news about a residential care facility.
In my understanding, the government committed to at least two centres, but the need is probably greater. We're hearing that four centres are needed, some regional centres certainly, and maybe some that could be culturally appropriate for indigenous peoples.
Is the government moving forward with a commitment to create a residential care facility for people suffering from PTSD?
Liberal
Seamus O'Regan Liberal St. John's South—Mount Pearl, NL
There are two things. I want to bring up a very important point based on your earlier question. An important secondary aspect of the education benefit has been digital outreach, so we've been able to plow through this a lot sooner.
Liberal
Seamus O'Regan Liberal St. John's South—Mount Pearl, NL
When you say we're not exactly sure, or we can't tell you exactly how we're going to carry that backlog and make sure it's sustainable, we're still actually waiting to see how big the uptake is on electronic delivery. So far, it has been tremendous. That's an important variable that we haven't had to deal with before.
Going back to PTSD, because I want to get to the question—
