I just want to say that I think what Mr. Casey is proposing in the amendment is very important. This process started long before this government came in. I think it's very important to find out the process, and lack of it, that was done before. That will probably give a perspective on why the minister had to make the decision that he made later on.
I think it's imperative that we listen to and hear Mr. O'Toole, who was the minister with this file, about how they debated this or talked about this, how they came up with that decision, why that decision was the way it was, what the veterans' opinion of that decision was and why, subsequently, that location and the whole decision had to be changed.
The unfortunate part is that the previous government neglected to have a monument for these veterans. The location was not the one they wanted either.
We've been trying to move ahead and we've been trying to listen to veterans. Although I can agree with Ms. Blaney that the process was not perfect and the survey was not absolutely perfect, the data that's been given by Veterans Affairs, its bureaucrats and civil servants has been pretty comprehensive in showing that an overwhelming majority of those respondents were veterans or members of veterans' families.
I think we trust Canadians, when they do a survey, to give fairly accurate information. We're a country that usually honours people's opinions, and when they say who they are, we respect it, unless challenged otherwise. I think out of everything we've heard here today, nobody has challenged the validity and said, “Oh, I know 12 people, five people, or x number of people who misstated that they were veterans.” I think when they said they're veterans, they're veterans, and we have to honour that and respect that. I highly doubt that any Canadian would mis-characterize themselves in a survey and say they're a veteran.
At the same time, I think it's very important to see the process, or lack of it, in the previous government. That's why we ask that Mr. O'Toole come before this committee and answer questions in that regard.