Well, I'm glad you asked that question because it gives me an opportunity to clarify my previous remarks to the committee.
First of all, I want to acknowledge that there are many bilingual people in Charlottetown and on Prince Edward Island. It was never my intention to say otherwise, nor did I or do I wish to denigrate anyone from Charlottetown, especially the staff at Veterans Affairs Canada and the members of the Union of Veterans Affairs Employees who work there.
What I did refer to the last time I was before the committee was the fact that there are challenges in recruiting bilingual professionals to complex positions within Veterans Affairs Canada. The department would seem to agree with me, since according to the testimony from one of my union colleagues last week at the committee, they are transferring bilingual employees into Charlottetown to meet existing needs.
Mr. Casey, I hope we can move past this issue and refocus on why we are here today. Canadian veterans and their families are suffering. We need to work together in order to bring them the best possible services and programs. We ask you to work co-operatively with the Union of Veterans Affairs Employees to make that a reality for our veterans and their families.