Mr. Speaker, on February 28, 2014, I asked the Minister of Veterans Affairs a question about homeless veterans.
In Montreal alone, at least 50 homeless veterans have been identified. Given that many of them have never used the services of Veterans Affairs Canada, I asked what the government was doing to identify and help homeless veterans and what it would do to ensure that new veterans did not end up on the street.
The minister said two things in reply. First, he said:
...Canadian veterans are eligible for thousands of dollars worth of benefits and services that are not available to the general public.
Then, he said:
Identifying veterans among the homeless is a daunting task.
I think that the minister should be ashamed of giving such irresponsible and contemptuous answers. First of all, the least we can do for those who sacrificed themselves to protect us is provide these services. Second of all, just because a task is daunting does not mean that the government should not undertake it.
I would now like to give an example of the government's mismanagement, taken from the Veterans Affairs Canada response to the Veterans Ombudsman. It states that processing an application for the rehabilitation program can take up to 34 days and that there are often further delays. Why? Because information is often missing from the application. They acknowledge that:
For veterans in crisis, VAC can expedite the application process, both by helping veterans complete the application quickly...
For example, Saint-Jean has an integrated personnel support centre where military personnel who are transitioning to civilian life can meet with an official for a transition interview. This is not a luxury.
What is the Conservative government doing to improve local services? Is it improving front-line service? No—instead it is closing veterans' service centres. That is what I call incompetent management.
The situation in Montreal is particularly worrisome for my riding because many soldiers who served on the Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu base decided to settle in the area. When their housing situation is already precarious and they become homeless, it is more likely that they will go to Montreal because there are practically no services for the homeless in the suburbs and cities around Montreal.
Something else is troubling: 50 homeless veterans have been identified in Montreal, but this number is probably low because no systematic classification has been carried out. Even though we do not have a statistical study to that effect, it is reasonable to believe that the problems of homelessness are related to mental health problems. As we know, there is an epidemic of post-traumatic stress disorder in this country. Just last Wednesday, we learned of the suicide of another veteran at the Valcartier base.
In its October 16, 2013, throne speech the government declared: “We will reach out to homeless veterans and help give them the support they need”. This promise has not been kept and is not enough.
The NDP believes that the government must be proactive. Not only must it get our veterans off the streets, but it must also identify those living in precarious situations who run the risk of becoming homeless.