I suppose that wasn't surprising, but it's certainly disappointing. We need to be working on behalf of veterans this summer. I guess there's an unwillingness among the other parties to do so. The Conservatives were prepared to do the work that's necessary.
Having said that, I would like to move the following motion:
That pursuant to Standing Order 108(2), the committee conduct a study on the effect of Veterans Affairs Canada policies on military recruitment.
I want to make it clear that this is an important study. However, what I would like to be doing is resuming debate on the motion we're supposed to be addressing, first and foremost, based on the agreement we had as a committee: the Prime Minister's interference in the Afghan monument situation and trying to make sure we get the proper respect and recognition for our Afghan veterans. Unfortunately, to resume debate on that, I would have to move a motion that would immediately be voted on. We already know, based on the vote we just saw, that we would have a refusal to do that. That's unfortunate because that is what this committee agreed to do. It's what we should be doing—making sure we show our Afghan veterans the respect they deserve.
Instead, I'm moving a motion that we conduct a study on the effect of Veterans Affairs Canada's policies on military recruitment. That's incredibly important. I just spoke about it. We hear every single day from veterans across this country and from serving members of the Canadian Armed Forces that they are incredibly frustrated with the lack of respect and service they receive from Veterans Affairs Canada. Serving members feel they have a government that isn't providing the equipment and tools they need, or showing them the respect they deserve. In fact, we're seeing many of them use food banks. We hear reports all across this country of veterans and serving members of the Canadian Armed Forces having to use food banks. We hear about homeless serving members of the Canadian Armed Forces and veterans. All of these things have a major impact on the willingness to serve in this country.
We want to pull our weight in the world. We want to be taken seriously in the world. It's unfortunate that under this Prime Minister, every single time there's an international summit or meeting of any kind, we are not taken seriously anywhere in the world. It's because we're not willing to step up and pull our weight. The men and women who serve this country do it with pride. They're among the best military members in the entire world. The quality of the people who serve in our Canadian Armed Forces is absolutely top-notch. However, the way they're treated, the equipment they're provided and the recognition and respect they get are not equal to what they deserve or to what they need in order to do their jobs properly.
Seeing the way veterans are treated makes anyone looking to get into our Canadian Armed Forces question that decision. It makes them wonder why they would want to serve their country. It makes those who are currently serving wonder the same: “Why do I continue to do this?” Of course, most of them will continue to serve despite all those things because it's something they're proud to do. It's something they do to honour their country. They serve their country. Despite what they're seeing from the current government, they're still willing to serve. They're still willing to put their lives on the line, but boy, it would sure be nice if they were given the equipment and tools they need and if as veterans they were given the respect and recognition they deserve.
I'll return to the motion previously at hand about the Afghan mission monument. It's a terrible situation, but it's a great example of exactly what we're talking about.
It's probably best that I give a bit of background on this for those watching this meeting. We have a situation where, despite the fact that we're 10 years past the end of that mission, there still hasn't been a monument constructed.
Shortly after the mission ended, it was announced by the previous Conservative government that a monument would be built to honour those who served in that mission and, in particular, to honour the 158 Canadians who gave their lives serving our country in Afghanistan. However, here we are. This government has been in power for nine years and nothing has been done.
They announced a competition to award the design contract for that monument, and the jury process set up by the government to do that, which is an internationally recognized process, was completed. Then, in November 2021, that decision was communicated to then minister of veterans affairs and then minister of Canadian heritage. The recommendations made by the two departments in question were that this be awarded to a company out of Quebec, Daoust, and that it be announced as quickly as possible.
Over the course of roughly the next year and a half—maybe a little more than a year and a half, in fact—we were able to receive documents, although there were a lot of redactions, and were able to determine that interference had occurred in that process and that the Prime Minister's Office and the Privy Council Office were involved. A number of meetings were held and discussions were had. One would have to assume that whatever those meetings and discussions were about, they led to the decision to change the decision.
The jury made a decision to award the contract, and when it was announced in June of last year, finally, a year and a half later—