Regarding the lack of fairness, one of the metrics that we're looking at and that this committee is certainly looking at is in terms of the [Technical difficulty—Editor] when veterans make that first application or make an application to Veterans Affairs Canada. What kind of experience do they have following that? Is it comparable between groups when you control for sex and gender, language, and so on?
The simple fact is that it is not fair at that point. Using that metric, it's fair to say there is an objective lack of fairness. Fairness isn't only about the inputs, quantifying case files, the number of cases and claims that are made. Outcomes can also be uneven. What's not being measured in some of these processes is the impact that some of these services, programs, and even some of the delays themselves are having on veterans.
Some of it is disproportionate, based on the fact that some veterans wait longer than others, because of their sex, gender, language, or orientation, or any number of other factors that we've covered in our brief.