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.