After the Liberal government鈥檚 cabinet shuffle, there is a new minister at the head of Veterans Affairs.
Minister Ginette Petitpas Taylor has taken over the job from Lawrence MacAulay. North Island-Powell River MP Rachel Blaney 鈥� who is the NDP鈥檚 Veterans Affairs critic 鈥� urged Petitpas Taylor to 鈥渄o better鈥� in supporting Canadian Veterans in a last week.
Blaney鈥檚 four-page letter lists what she calls 鈥渋nequities and inefficiencies鈥� within the claims system, discriminatory policies within Veterans Affairs Canada, as well as a number of other improvements that she says are needed within the system.
鈥淢inister, you have a lot of work ahead of you. I am your critic, but I can also be your strongest ally,鈥� Blaney says in the letter. 鈥淗ow a country treats its veterans has a direct impact on military recruitment, and we all know that Canada鈥檚 military recruitment is currently at an all-time low. I urge you to reflect on the discriminatory policies and overuse of red tape inherit in VAC鈥檚 current system and how those policies create poor outcomes for veterans, as well as for military recruitment.鈥�
In her time as critic, Blaney has spoken about ending the outsourcing of the Veterans Affairs contract, which was put in place under Petitpas Taylor鈥檚 predecessor, as well as more equitable treatment for women and LGBTQ2S+ veterans going through the Veterans Affairs system.
鈥淰eterans and their families have sacrificed much of their lives for Canada and deserve to be treated with respect and dignity and receive the supports they are due in a timely manner,鈥� said Blaney. 鈥淯nfortunately, this is not always the case. Too many veterans tell me that they are being treated unfairly by your department, experiencing undue delays in receiving supports, being denied benefits because of discriminatory policies, and always being told to wait and then wait some more for outcomes that never seem to appear.鈥�
The letter also discusses removing red tape, and she calls on the minister to end the 鈥淕old Digger Clause,鈥� which prevents spouses of married veterans who are older than 60 from getting survivor pensions.
鈥淐anada has kept the Gold Digger pension clause that discriminates against Veterans who marry after the age of sixty on the books since 1901,鈥� said Blaney. 鈥淭his archaic, sexist clause prevents the spouses of veterans from receiving survivor pension benefits. First, your government promised to eliminate the clause but then did not do so. Not one penny of that money has been given to a survivor.鈥�
The Mirror has reached out to the Veterans Affairs Minister鈥檚 office for comment.
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