Hon. Yonah Martin (Deputy Leader of the Opposition): Honourable senators, my question is also for the government leader in the Senate. Last week’s report from the Auditor General shows that the NDP-Liberal government continues to fail our veterans when it comes to the timely processing of their applications for disability benefits. The Auditor General found that veterans applying for benefits for the first time wait an average of 39 weeks for a decision — more than double the service standard of 16 weeks. The report stated the service standard itself has not been met for seven years. As well, Veterans Affairs Canada doesn’t know if any of the initiatives taken recently to speed up processing have worked or whether they slowed down processing instead.

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Leader, why does your government continue to do such a poor job of providing our veterans with the benefits they earned in service to our country?

Hon. Marc Gold (Government Representative in the Senate): Thank you for your question. The government welcomes the Auditor General’s report and agrees with the recommendations. The government knows that the current processing times for disability benefits for veterans are unacceptable, and reducing them remains a top priority. That’s why the government has recently invested $140 million to extend its staff working non-stop to reduce the backlog on top of its previous investment of nearly $200 million.

With this investment, the government has reduced the backlog by 50%. There is more work to be done, and the government is committed to doing it. The government is working hard to close the gaps in wait times, for example, for francophone and female veterans. The government is working to improve the quality of data and processes within the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, or RCMP. Reducing wait times for veterans is a top priority. It will continue to be a priority until the backlog is under control.