I call this meeting to order.
Welcome to meeting No. 51 of the Standing Committee on Veterans Affairs.
Pursuant to Standing Order 108(2) and the motion adopted on Monday, October 3, 2022, the committee is resuming its study on the experience of women veterans.
Today’s meeting is taking place in a hybrid format. Some of the MPs are attending the meeting via the Zoom application.
To keep the meeting running smoothly, all comments should be addressed through the chair. I am also informing the witnesses and members of the committee that in accordance with our routine motion all witnesses have completed the required connection tests.
As the study we are conducting is on the experience of women veterans, before we welcome our witnesses, I would like to provide this trigger warning. We may be discussing experiences related to general health and mental health. This may be triggering to viewers, members, or staff with similar experiences. If you feel distressed or need help, please advise the clerk.
Now I would like to welcome our witnesses. As an individual, we have Dawn McIlmoyle, sailor 3rd class and registered nurse. From The Pepper Pod, we have Lieutenant-Colonel Sandra Perron, chief executive officer. From the Royal Canadian Legion, we have Carolyn Hughes, director of veterans services, national headquarters. Finally, from Women Warriors' Healing Garden, we have Dr. Elaine Waddington Lamont, mental health director.
Before giving the floor to the witnesses, I'd like to remind the committee members that we decided we would move our study to somewhere other than Parliament Hill so that we could meet with women veterans from elsewhere. In order to do so, we need to prepare a detailed budget. It should be adopted in time for May 19.
Are the committee members in agreement to authorize a team consisting of the analyst, the clerk, and the chair of the committee to prepare the travel budget and to submit it to you with several options, on Monday, May 15? Are there any objections?
Mr. Richards, you have the floor.