Question Period Note: BUDGET 2018

• To ensure that Veterans get services and benefits when they need them, our Government will provide $42.8 million over two years, starting in 2018–19, to increase service delivery capacity at Veterans Affairs Canada.
• New elements in Budget 2018 represent an additional investment of almost $3.6 billion to support Canada's Veterans. When combined with services and benefits to help Veterans in a wide-range of areas—including education, employment, caregiver support and physical and mental health—already announced in previous budgets, our Government of Canada’s investments since 2016 add up to nearly $10 billion.
• Our Government recognizes that psychiatric service dogs can play an important role in helping Veterans cope with conditions like post-traumatic stress disorder. Through Budget 2018, our Government will expand the Medical Expense Tax Credit to recognize costs for these animals for the 2018 and future tax years.
• Our Government will provide funding of $24.4 million over five years for Cemetery and Grave Maintenance, starting in 2018–19.
• Budget 2018 focuses on the overall well-being of Veterans and their families by investing in supports and services for Veterans and their families.
• This Budget builds on the historic investments we made in Budget 2016 and 2017 which improved financial security for many, many Veterans.

BACKGROUND – BUDGET 2018 – EQUALITY GROWTH: GROWING THE MIDDLE CLASS

Key Elements

Budget 2018 proposes measures for:

• Better Services for Canada’s Veterans
• Better Support for Canada’s Veterans and their families
• Expanding the Medical Expense Tax Credit for Psychiatric Service Dogs
• Cemetery and Grave Maintenance

In 2018 Budget for Veterans:

Better Services for Veterans

Since 2016, the Government has put in place substantial improvements to the benefits and services available for Veterans. For example, the Government has raised financial supports for Veterans and caregivers, introduced new education and training benefits and expanded a range of services available to the families of medically released Veterans.

With additional benefits and services now becoming available, more and more Veterans are coming forward to get the help they need. For example, over the past two years, Veterans Affairs Canada has seen a 32 percent increase in the number of applications for disability benefits. To keep up with the rise in demand and ensure that Veterans get services and benefits when they need them the Government proposes to provide $42.8 million over two years, starting in 2018–19, to increase service delivery capacity at Veterans Affairs Canada.

Better Support for Canada’s Veterans and their Families

The Government of Canada is committed to supporting Canada's Veterans and their families. Canada owes an enormous debt of gratitude to the women and men who have served in uniform and it is its responsibility to make sure that they are taken care of. On December 20, 2017, the Government unveiled its Pension for Life plan, a program designed to reduce the complexity of support programs available to Veterans and their families. It proposes a broader range of benefits, including financial stability, to Canada's Veterans, with a particular focus on supports for Veterans with the most severe disabilities.

The Government will introduce legislation for the Pension for Life plan, which will include the choice of tax-free monthly payments for life to recognize pain and suffering caused by a service-related disability up to a maximum monthly amount of $2,650 for those most severely disabled; and income replacement for Veterans who are facing barriers returning to work after military service at 90 per cent of their pre-release salary.

These new elements represent an additional investment of almost $3.6 billion to support Canada's Veterans. When combined with services and benefits to help Veterans in a wide-range of areas—including education, employment, caregiver support and physical and mental health—already announced in previous budgets, the Government of Canada’s investments since 2016 add up to nearly $10 billion.

Expanding the Medical Expense Tax Credit for Psychiatric Service Dogs

The Government recognizes that psychiatric service dogs can play an important role in helping Canadians cope with conditions like post-traumatic stress disorder. Through Budget 2018, the Government proposes to expand the Medical Expense Tax Credit to recognize costs for these animals for the 2018 and future tax years. This measure will directly benefit Veterans and others in the disability community who rely on psychiatric service dogs, and complements the work of organizations that support them, such as the Royal Canadian Legion, and Paws Fur Thought, which provides service dogs to Veterans and first responders with invisible disabilities.

Cemetery and Grave Maintenance

Veterans Affairs Canada is committed to honouring the sacrifice of Veterans by maintaining the graves and grave markers for Canadians who were buried or had grave markers erected by the Government of Canada. These sites and markers recognize the bravery and commitment of those who served our country and they must be maintained. There are about 110,000 Canadians buried overseas as a result of the two World Wars, as well as 200,000 graves in Canada for Veterans who were buried at the expense of the Government of Canada.

In 2017, an evaluation by Veterans Affairs Canada found that there was a backlog of 45,000 graves cared for by Veterans Affairs Canada in Canada requiring repairs. With existing levels of funding, the evaluation found that it would take more than 17 years to complete the needed repairs. To eliminate the current backlog of repairs in the next 5 years, the Government proposes to provide funding of $24.4 million over five years, starting in 2018–19. The funding will be used for cleaning, restoring or replacing headstones, and fixing foundation issues.

None