Push to government for action on New Veterans Charter at the top of agenda
OTTAWA, ON – As Remembrance Day ends The Royal Canadian Legion wants to extend its deep appreciation and sincere thanks to the millions of Canadians who wore a Poppy and came out to ceremonies across our great country and around the world. Your outpouring of support for Canada’s Veterans and their families is a shining example of what makes this country great.
For the Legion, today it is back to work – and for us that means renewing the efforts we engage in every day to provide service to our Veterans, to seek the highest levels of care and benefits for them, and to ensure our government is pressed to deliver on the promises it has made to the men and women who serve, and have served, Canada.
Prior to Remembrance Day, the Legion launched a national letter writing campaign calling on the government to action a number of recommendations that would greatly improve the New Veterans Charter. The Legion, once again, calls on all Canadians to send this letter to your MP and Federal Ministers and help make the changes our Veterans and their families need in the care and benefits they receive. Visit the Legion website here to support our letter writing campaign – www.legion.ca/call-for-action-on-the-new-veterans-charter/
The Legion, along with other Veterans’ Organizations, has always advocated that the New Veterans Charter needs to be a living document. That was the intent on its implementation in 2006 and we have advocated for change since day one. However, in its latest response to calls for improvements, the Government has not clearly laid out when and how it will make improvements and the Legion is demanding action now.
There can be no question that all Veterans’ organizations have exactly the same goal in mind – to seek the best support possible from government for the care and benefits Veterans deserve for their service. The Legion’s mission statement is based on serving all Veterans and we have always placed service to Veterans at the forefront of everything we do.
The Legion stands behind its legacy of care for Veterans which has evolved over our almost 90 years of service to Veterans and Canadians. The Legion has adapted its approach to providing service to Veterans as their needs have changed, and through the processes and policies of successive governments. Yet we have never diminished our commitment or capacity to push for the highest levels of care and benefits from all governments. Our approach has always been to target the decision makers first to get the action we seek. When not provided with adequate response, we then call on our more than 300,000 members and all Canadians to support our efforts in achieving the best for our Veterans.
While some may ask if we have done enough, the Legion’s track record of accomplishments in achieving real change to improve the lives of Veterans, their families and our communities is a matter of public record of which our members, and Canadians, are extremely proud. We will always embrace opportunities to improve our service delivery to Veterans. The Legion will continue to watch over the actions of all governments when it comes to issues that impact the lives of Veterans and their families. And we will never waver in our commitment to honour, remember and serve our Veterans, our communities and our country.
We Will Remember Them
