Mr. Speaker, I rise to table a petition signed by people from Espanola calling for the return of a Canadian volunteer service medal. They remind us that at one time this medal was issued to recognize Canadians who served voluntarily in the Canadian Forces but was stopped around 1947.
The petitioners note that Veterans Affairs Canada considers any former member of the Canadian Forces who was released with an honourable discharge and successfully underwent basic training to be a veteran. They ask the government to recognize this service by creating and issuing a new Canadian volunteer service medal. The medal would be available to those who volunteered to serve Canada in the regular forces, reserve military forces, and cadet corps support staff who have completed 365 days of uninterrupted honourable duty. The new medal would cover service from September 2, 1945 to the present day in perpetuity.