One of the more troubling legacies of the Stephen Harper government was its penchant for underfunding services and programs for Canadian veterans.
In fact, the auditor general reported that in the last year of Harper’s reign, a good deal of the money that was promised for veterans services was dumped back into the treasury to create the illusion of a balanced budget.
READ MORE: Liberals left $105M meant for veterans unspent in last fiscal year
That political sleight of hand outraged Canadians, and the incoming Liberal government vowed that things would be different under their guidance. Sadly, that doesn’t seem to be the case.
As Global News reported this weekend, the Liberals left $105 million of unspent money for veterans services on the table in the last fiscal year.
In fact, the government has allocated but not spent about $372 million for various support services for vets in the past three years.
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According to the government’s own statistics, Veterans Affairs Canada is failing to meet 15 of 24 service standards, including wait times for accessing disability payments, long-term care, rehab, vocational training and health benefits.
Those statistics are both troubling and shameful.
For its part, the government states that getting veterans and their families the support they need is the No. 1 priority, and it boasts that it has increased annual funding for vets by more than $1 billion a year since 2016.
The government also said that any money allocated for veterans services that is unspent in a fiscal year would be available the next year.
That sounds impressive, but it’s cold comfort to needy veterans and their families, who need help now.
Clearly, there is a huge gap between what is being promised and what is being delivered.
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The number of applications for assistance has almost doubled in the past four years, but that reality should be a clarion call that more resources must be allocated to assist vets and their families.
How many more tragic stories of PTSD, substance abuse, homelessness and even suicide do we need to hear to understand that the status quo is unacceptable?
No one is suggesting the government is intentionally short-changing our vets, but clearly, the bureaucratic red tape needs to be eliminated.
These brave and heroic men and women and their families have paid an enormous physical and emotional price in service to our country. Simply put, they deserve better.
Bill Kelly is the host of the Bill Kelly Show on Global News Radio 900 CHML.
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