The additional investment was made after the period covered by our audit, so I do not know why the department was given that money or what the department did with it.
During our audit, we observed that additional money was sometimes given on an ad hoc basis. We noticed that this money was usually used to make sure that temporary workers continued to work on processing applications. However, some of those employees have quit their jobs at Veterans Affairs Canada to look for a permanent job.
It takes time to integrate a new employee into the department. The employee has to be trained so they can process applications properly. When employees leave the department because their position is not permanent, temporary funding is not going to help improve things. That is why we recommended that funding be a bit more stable and that a long-term view be taken. Processing the backlog of applications must not be the only focus.
If it is okay with you, Mr. Dompierre would like to add something.