Greg Thompson

[Veterans Affairs, October 25th, 2007]

Mr. Speaker, that member and his party have no credibility on issues pertaining to veterans or men and women in uniform or the military.

Members of the NDP stand in the House time and time again, and I ask every member in the House to examine their record, and they consistently, purposely and deliberately vote against every measure to support our men and women in uniform, including our veterans, on all military issues in terms of supply and the resources the members of the military need to do their job. The NDP has no credibility on that file.

[Veterans Affairs, June 20th, 2007]

Mr. Speaker, we are committed to enhancing that program. The member knows this. In fact, if he were being intellectually honest, he would tell the House that we brought 12,000 people, veterans and spouses, into that program in the last year alone.

When we do it, we want to do it in a way that is consistent with the department and consistent with the good delivery to veterans and widows. We are committed to doing it, and we will get it done.

[Veterans Affairs, June 12th, 2007]

Mr. Speaker, as you well know, this file has been around for 40 years. The Liberals fell asleep on it. We are going to get it done.

Here are examples of the hon. member's record as minister. The Liberals cut VIP services to allied veterans. They did that. They cut burial programs for veterans. The member did that. The Liberals cut travel rates and treatment benefits to veterans. She did that on her watch. The Liberals cut $59 million from veterans in 1995 and another $11 million in 1998. That is their record. It is pathetic.

We will get the job done on agent orange as well.

[Veterans Affairs, June 12th, 2007]

Mr. Speaker, the member is the former minister who was in a total state of denial during her time in office, as was the Liberal government for 13 years, even going back to the days of Pierre Trudeau. We will have a resolution to this without their help. The Liberals did absolutely nothing except deny it for 13 years and many years before that. This file goes back 40 years. She of all people would know that. She sat in her place and did nothing all the time that she was minister.

[Veterans Affairs, June 12th, 2007]

Mr. Speaker, again this goes back to the hypocrisy of the Liberals. The Liberal member would know that in the last year alone we have brought over 12,000 new entries into the VIP system.

He never tells that to Mrs. Carter or anyone else. He should do the math. The Liberals did not do their job in 13 years. We will get the job done but only after our health care review is completed so it will be the best service to the veterans and the widows. It will be consistent and good delivery to those people.

[Veterans Affairs, June 12th, 2007]

Mr. Speaker, what really gets me in that question is the hypocrisy of the Liberals. For 13 years they purposely and deliberately took benefits from veterans.

As I told the House and I told the member himself, we have a health care review under way and we are going to enhance those benefits but only once the review is completed.

We are not going to be like the Liberals and take benefits away from veterans which they did for 13 years.

[Canadian Forces, May 31st, 2007]

Mr. Speaker, the member knows full well that one of the first things I did as Minister of Veterans Affairs was to call for a health care review so we could understand exactly how we could extend those benefits, the VIP precisely. The member knows that and members of the committee know that. We will act on it but not before that full report is in.

[Veterans Affairs, May 2nd, 2007]

Mr. Speaker, the member has to be intellectually honest in his remarks but he is not being intellectually honest because he must acknowledge the 12,000 we brought in this year alone.

In terms of the veterans who are applying for disability pensions, he is referring to an issue that we worked on with our counterparts. We have the best pension entry plan in the world and the best arbitration in the world in terms of appeals. We are getting the job done for veterans.

[Veterans Affairs, May 2nd, 2007]

Mr. Speaker, the member will acknowledge that we did more in our first 13 months than the Liberals did in 13 years: five OSI clinics, front line workers for veterans, an ombudsman for veterans, a bill of rights and we implemented the new charter.

We are committed to enhancing the VIP. I want to let the member know that this year alone we brought 12,000 new entries into that program. That is not a bad record.

[Veterans Affairs, April 27th, 2007]

Mr. Speaker, I want to make the member aware of what we have done for veterans in the last budget.

In fact, since taking office, we have increased benefits to veterans to the tune of half a billion dollars. We have brought in more front line workers. Those are things that the Liberals actually rejected in our budget. We have already brought in an ombudsman and the bill of rights. We are committed to improving those benefits.

Again, we are not going to do it in the ad hoc, make it up as we go along approach that the Liberals always take. We are doing it in a way that is--