New announcement: From top cop to political target: Julian Fantino's rocky tenure at VAC

From top cop to political target: Julian Fantino's rocky tenure at Veterans Affairs

Lee Berthiaume More from Lee Berthiaume
Published on: November 30, 2014Last Updated: November 30, 2014 4:57 PM EST

http://ottawacitizen.com/news/politics/from-top-cop-to-political-target-julian-fantinos-rocky-tenure-at-veterans-affairs

When Julian Fantino was elected to Parliament in November 2010, he was seen as a star. A former Toronto police chief and Ontario Provincial Police commissioner, the hard-nosed cop had the credentials to shine in a Conservative government that billed itself as tough on crime.

Four years later, the view is very different.

When Auditor General Michael Ferguson released an explosive report detailing the hurdles many veterans still face trying to access mental health services, Fantino was an ocean away in Italy. His office defended the trip, which marked the 70th anniversary of the Second World War's Italian campaign. But some questioned whether Fantino was running from the auditor's findings. Or worse, whether Prime Minister Stephen Harper had decided to keep him out of sight.

Some see Fantino's performance at Veterans Affairs as spectacularly disastrous. Footage of a nasty exchange with veterans in January, where the minister took issue with a finger-jabbing soldier before storming out, went viral. So did video of Fantino being chased down a hallway by the wife of a vet suffering from PTSD in May. Both incidents shadow him to this day.

Those who have worked with Fantino say those examples don't do him justice. Even opposition critics and veterans groups who have been critical of the government concede the minister's genuine desire to help veterans. And they say he has helped in some ways.

But four years after arriving in Parliament, Fantino's political weaknesses have been exposed and the government is on the defensive when it comes to its treatment of veterans. It could be only a matter of time until he is replaced.

On the surface, Fantino had the hallmarks of an outstanding veterans affairs minister. He ran two large police forces before being elected to Parliament. He performed well as secretary of state for seniors shortly after arriving in Ottawa.

Former staff, veterans groups and even opposition critics say he also harbours a genuine affection for veterans.

Perhaps that is not surprising. Fantino was born in Italy in 1942, when the country was under the heel of Benito Mussolini's fascists. It wouldn't be until two years later that allied forces, including thousands of Canadians, would free the country.

NDP veterans affairs critic Peter Stoffer, born in the Netherlands, believes the experience was informative because "our parents were both liberated by the Canadians."

Except the majority of veterans seeking the government's assistance today are peacekeepers or former military members who served in Afghanistan. Some are still in their 20s. And they haven't been shy about voicing their anger over the barriers they face gaining support and services.

In addition, those who complain the loudest often don't represent the majority of veterans. Rather, they are the ones who have or are in danger of falling through the cracks.

"The majority of veterans are not disabled and disadvantaged," said former veterans ombudsman Pat Stogran. "The ones who are killing themselves are the ones who are very desperate and being abandoned."

Fantino, as a police chief, displayed little empathy for those — such as aboriginal groups, gay activists and other subsections of society — who sought to air their grievances through public protests. While some described him as tough and no-nonsense, others saw him as polarizing, insensitive and aloof.

That didn't matter for the portfolios he held before veterans affairs: untangling the federal government's troubled military procurement strategy as the associate defence minister; and overseeing its Canada's foreign aid as international development minister.

Former staff say those traits have even been recognized as a strength at the cabinet table, where the former police chief's background and experience are valued. But they also acknowledge this style has caused problems on a file that deals exclusively with people.

"He has no time for political games, or what he thinks are political games," said one former staff member, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

"If there is a family of a victim, and he thinks you are not representative of the group and you're doing this to embarrass me, then he's going to walk away. And he doesn't give a sh — what anybody thinks about it."

Fantino has been able to push some initiatives to help veterans. He launched a review of the New Veterans Charter, the system through which modern veterans receive benefits. He secured more money for funerals and burials. He championed adding the Boer War and Afghanistan to the National War Memorial.

But he has failed to address the most pressing complaints voiced by veterans, including changing the department's culture to make it more receptive to veterans' needs, which in turn has contributed to the recent public relations disasters. And when he is challenged in public, the results have not gone well.

"What will live with him through the rest of his career is that finger-pointing," said an official with one Canadian veterans' organization. "That was a really bad day that has literally overshadowed his tenure."

The official says the incident and others have contributed to an atmosphere of distrust toward the government among large parts of the veterans' community.

Veterans Affairs was supposed to be a strength for the Conservative government, which had long touted itself as the most pro-military. It has become a weakness under Fantino's watch. Sensing blood, opposition parties plan to make veterans an election issue next year.

"He's been absent since he became minister," said Liberal veterans affairs critic Frank Valeriote. "He has not heard the pleas of our veterans. He's paid lip service to their pleas."

Recognizing the danger, the government brought in reinforcements: retired general Walter Natynczyk, the former chief of defence staff, became the department's top bureaucrat last month.

Widely respected, Natynczyk will be charged with doing what Fantino couldn't: instilling a new, pro-veteran culture into the department; and offering a caring, compassionate face to Veterans Affairs. The appointment has been met with rave reviews.

"The Legion is really hoping that Minister Fantino listens carefully and takes the advice of his new deputy minister (Natynczyk)," said Royal Canadian Legion spokesman Scott Ferris.

Yet even with Natynczyk's appointment, Fantino's time as veterans affairs minister may be running down. Critics say the prime minister can't shuffle Fantino out of the position so close to an election, as that would be seen as an admission of failure.

"If they do that, then the government will admit they have bigger problems," said Stoffer.

But the minister's office has been shaken up, with his chief of staff leaving in recent weeks. Fantino has made few public appearances. His parliamentary secretary, Parm Gill, is taking on a greater role in question period. The government has just months before an election where its treatment of veterans — and Fantino's perceived role — may factor in to the outcome.

lberthiaume@ottawacitizen.com

Twitter.com/leeberthiaume
Julian Fantino at a glance

Born in Italy, emigrated to Canada at age 11.
Worked as a police officer for almost four decades, including as chief of the London Police Service, York Regional Police and Toronto Police Service. Became commissioner of the Ontario Provincial Police.
Elected to House of Commons for Vaughan 2010, re-elected 2011.
Served as minister of state for seniors, and associate minister of national defence.
Served as minister of international development.
Currently minister of Veterans Affairs.

(Source: http://www.resultsforvaughan.ca/en/)

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Regards,
The Canadian Veterans Advocacy Team.

New announcement: THE OPERATIONAL STRESS RECOVERY PROGRAM

THE OPERATIONAL STRESS RECOVERY PROGRAM

EQUINE ASSISTED THERAPY, SPECIALIZED WOMEN'S OSI PROGRAM, FAMILY INVOLVEMENT IN THE PROGRAM

http://www.operationalstressrecovery.ca/

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Regards,
The Canadian Veterans Advocacy Team.

New announcement: Going Crazy in the Green Machine

Going Crazy in the Green Machine

The Story of Trauma and PTSD among Canada's Veterans by John J. Whelan

http://www.friesenpress.com/bookstore/title/119734000013576363

Many Canadians are vaguely aware of the military's steady involvement in overseas operations over the past 20 years. For many soldiers, however, memories of these places torment them daily. They are haunted; they are changed from who they were as proud men and women. How do we support these soldiers to find their way back home? The story of Master Corporal Billy Reardon is an intimate portrayal of his journey from young man to mentally wounded military veteran. We see the world through his eyes as the toll of his deployments mount and as he struggles within the mental health system. We also see him find recovery and reconnection to the military brotherhood along with other veterans. Billy's story raises questions about the roles of front-line leadership and challenges health providers to develop an intimate understanding of military culture as a prerequisite to assisting traumatized veterans and their families.

ohn J. Whelan Author

John Whelan, PhD, is a clinical psychologist who has spent a 20-year career working with serving and retired members of the Canadian Armed Forces. He served in the RCN for nearly nine years during the Cold War years before leaving to attend university. Dr. Whelan completed his dissertation on treatment outcomes for military members with substance abuse and mental health issues and he went on to serve as clinical director for the CAF addiction treatment programs. In 2004, he established a private clinic for the treatment of complex military PTSD and developed a group therapy program for veterans to help foster peer support networks. He continues to conduct outcome-focussed clinical research, advocacy and outreach work, and he is active in several veterans organizations.

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Regards,
The Canadian Veterans Advocacy Team.

New announcement: Is it too late for Harper to mend fences with veterans?

Is it too late for Harper to mend fences with veterans?

By Tasha Kheiriddin | Nov 20, 2014 8:59 pm

http://www.ipolitics.ca/2014/11/20/is-it-too-late-for-harper-to-mend-fences-with-veterans/

In September, the Department of National Defense published some shocking statistics. Between 2002 and 2014, 138 soldiers were killed in combat in Afghanistan. During the same period, 160 military personnel committed suicide.

The fact that more servicemen and women were dying of suicide than enemy action prompted outrage across the country, and umbrage on Parliament Hill. Defence Minister Rob Nicholson defended the government's record, saying that it had increased the military's mental health budget by $11 million to $50 million a year. Veterans Affairs Minister Julian Fantino exhorted "… everyone … who think(s) someone may be suffering from mental health conditions to seek the professional assistance they need right away."

Fast forward to November 20 … and some more shocking numbers. During the period 2006-2013, $1.1 billion that had been budgeted for Veterans Affairs was returned by the department to the federal treasury. A third of the money was sent back between 2011-2013, a period when the government was actively reducing the national deficit. That exercise was a success, leaving a healthy surplus which has now been allocated to income-splitting, among other things.

Cue the outrage, part two. Some of the families of vets who committed suicide may well be asking themselves — what if? What if some of that money had been spent on their loved ones? What if more programs to help combat the ravages of PTSD or other injuries had been available?

Other veterans will probably also have their own what-ifs — not on questions of life and death, but of dignity and respect. In January 2014, the government announced the closure of nine Veterans Affairs offices, replacing them with 650 "points of service" at Service Canada centres. Veterans complained that the face-to-face, specialized offices served them far better than the general Service Canada offices, accessible by a 1-800 number, and protests erupted across the country.

Adding insult to injury, Fantino showed up over an hour late to a meeting with veterans opposed to the closures — and proceeded to get into a verbal brawl with some of them.

The notion of a veterans group engaged in an outright political assault on a Tory government would have been unthinkable just a few years ago — but the accumulated weight of the cuts and the cockups has enraged a constituency that once was Conservative bedrock.

Then there was the Day of Honour for Afghanistan veterans on May 9 in Ottawa. It was a great idea — paying tribute to those who served in Canada's mission there — undermined once again by God-awful government messaging. In the lead-up to the event, the government sent the families of fallen soldiers an invitation that included this callous line: "Should your schedule allow it, your attendance would be at your own expense."

So what should have been a tribute to our soldiers' achievements and courage turned into a sordid dustup over who should pay for plane tickets. The Tories claimed the letter had been sent "in error" and announced the costs would be covered, in part by sponsors such as the True Patriot Love Foundation and Air Canada.

Finally, while this past Remembrance Day was particularly notable for its solemnity, it also saw an escalation of hostilities between many veterans and the Harper government. The Canada Coalition for Veterans plans to actively campaign against the Conservatives in the next election and threatens to protest ribbon-cuttings, ceremonies and the like.

What's remarkable about all this is how quickly the relationship between veterans and the federal government degenerated. The notion of a veterans group engaged in an outright political assault on a Tory government would have been unthinkable just a few years ago — but the accumulated weight of the cuts and the cockups has enraged a constituency that once was Conservative bedrock.

To be fair, the Tories have been on a deficit-cutting bent since 2011 for several reasons — not all of them political. There's an expectation that governments balance the books, and they promised to do so by 2015. The government could not bring in other promised measures, such as income-splitting, until the deficit was gone. And nobody wants to run an election campaign with the balance still in the red. They racked up the deficit in the wake of the financial crisis; failing to balance the books would be a failure of economic stewardship, and would damage the image of sound fiscal management.

Now, however, that same frugality is damaging their image among a key constituency. It's irony of a sort: In pleasing one part of their base with the Family Tax Cut, the Tories have managed to alienate another by pinching pennies in Veterans' Affairs.

Robbing Peter to pay Paul doesn't work if Peter gets wind of it — or if lives are literally on the line.

Tasha Kheiriddin is a political writer and broadcaster who frequently comments in both English and French. In her student days, Tasha was active in youth politics in her hometown of Montreal, eventually serving as national policy director and then president of the Progressive Conservative Youth Federation of Canada. After practising law and a stint in the government of Mike Harris, Tasha became the Ontario director of the Canadian Taxpayers Federation and co-wrote the 2005 bestseller, Rescuing Canada's Right: Blueprint for a Conservative Revolution. Tasha moved back to Montreal in 2006 and served as vice-president of the Montreal Economic Institute, and later director for Quebec of the Fraser Institute, while also lecturing on conservative politics at McGill University. Tasha now lives in Whitby, Ontario with her daughter Zara, born in 2009.

The views, opinions and positions expressed by all iPolitics columnists and contributors are the author's alone. They do not inherently or expressly reflect the views, opinions and/or positions of iPolitics.

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Regards,
The Canadian Veterans Advocacy Team.

Over $1.1 billion in unspent funds at Veterans Affairs since 2006: documents

Over $1.1 billion in unspent funds at Veterans Affairs since 2006: documents

https://ca.news.yahoo.com/over-1-1-billion-unspent-funds-veterans-affairs-230110146.html

OTTAWA - Veterans Affairs Canada has returned $1.13 billion to the federal treasury in unspent funds since the Conservatives came to power in 2006 — cash that critics say should have gone towards improved benefits and services.

The figure, which surfaced this week in the House of Commons, has led to renewed criticism of the Harper government, which is already smarting over its frayed relations with disgruntled former soldiers.

Data tabled in the House in response to a written question shows roughly one-third of the so-called lapsed funds were handed back between the 2011 and 2013 budget years when the government was engaged in a massive deficit-cutting drive.

The Conservatives often trumpet how much the budget for veterans care has gone up under their watch — right now it's about $3.4 billion a year, up from $2.8 billion when the Tories took office.

What they don't say is that anywhere between 4.7 per cent and 8.2 per cent of the total allocation has been allowed to lapse because of the department's inability or reluctance to spend it all, said NDP veterans critic Peter Stoffer.

Veterans Affairs Minister Julian Fantino met Wednesday in Quebec City with select organizations representing ex-soldiers, but some of the loudest critics of the department's spending on benefits and services were not invited.

On Tuesday, Stoffer put a pointed question about the lapsed funds to Fantino, who answered by tallying up the government's total spending on the veteran's department — roughly $30 billion since 2006.

"It means improved rehabilitation for Canadian veterans," Fantino said. "It means more counselling for veterans' families. It means more money for veterans' higher education and retraining. It means we care deeply about our veterans."

But that didn't answer the question of why so much of the budget has been allowed to lapse, said Stoffer, noting that the overall budget of the department is something the government is committed to under the law.

The use of lapsed funding to reduce the federal deficit is an exercise that's being practised across all departments, he added.

"The deputy ministers ... have obviously been told by the higher-ups that, 'This money has to come back to us in order for us to have our books balanced, and that way we can use that money for other purposes, like income-splitting.'"

Over the last two fiscal years, all federal departments allowed more than $18 billion in budgeted funding to lapse, according public accounts figures released at the end of October.

Frank Valeriote, the Liberal veterans critic, said ex-soldiers who've been denied benefits will look at the unspent funds and feel "hoodwinked, completely abandoned" and wonder why they've made sacrifices for their country.

"It is reprehensible and unconscionable what they're doing so that the government can create an image of fiscal responsibility," he said.

The Quebec City meeting came on Wednesday at a time when multiple Conservative sources say there is concern that the party's reliable support in the veterans community is bleeding away because of the loud and prolonged battle.

The sources, speaking on condition of anonymity, say there is growing frustration within the party over Fantino's apparent inability to forge positive relationships with veterans, unlike his predecessor, Steven Blaney.

Beyond veterans, long considered a natural constituency for Conservatives, there are signs the Tories are in trouble with ordinary Canadians on the issue. A newly released internal poll on public perceptions of the Canadian Forces suggests the treatment of veterans was registering strongly with respondents.

"Problems that veterans face (42 per cent) and soldiers returning home (29 per cent) were top of mind for many Canadians when asked what they recalled about the (Canadian Armed Forces)," said the Phoneix Strategies Perspectives survey, conducted last May, but released by National Defence online this week.

The survey of 2,025 people found more than two-thirds (67 per cent) of those asked recalled recently seeing, reading, or hearing about issues faced by returning soldiers or their families.

That's a significant increase over 48 per cent of respondents to a similar poll conducted in 2012.

Follow @Murray_Brewster on Twitter

Regards,
The Canadian Veterans Advocacy Team.

http://canadianveteransadvocacy.com/Board2/index.php

New announcement: Veterans versus Harper in 2015/ A full chapter from "Party of One"

The final front: Veterans versus Harper in 2015/ A full chapter from "Party of One" by Michael Harris (12 pages)

http://www.ipolitics.ca/author/mharris/

The final front: Veterans versus Harper in 2015
http://www.ipolitics.ca/2014/11/13/the-final-front-veterans-versus-harper-in-2015/

Monument-lovers were impressed with all that pomp. But what about the people at the centre of this carefully orchestrated exercise in emotional crowd-control — the living veterans? What are they doing?

Are they cheering their closet commander? Are they mistaking jingoism for patriotism — as so many are these days, including quite a few people in the media? Have they chosen marketing over information?

They have not. In fact, the veterans are here not to praise Caesar but to bury him. That's why veterans Ron Clarke and Mike Blais have launched an Anybody But Conservative campaign to rally opposition against the government in time for the election., Those who have been watching the veterans's file closely on Harper's watch — rather than listening to the Top Gun drivel being dished out by the PM — know that a national disgrace has been unfolding in Canada. While the Harper government has been a great little military monument-builder ($50 million added to that budget), it has abandoned the flesh-and-blood veterans who came back from war needing help.

[snip]

*
http://www.ipolitics.ca/2014/11/11/delay-deny-and-die-the-harper-government-and-veterans/

Delay, deny and die: The Harper government and veterans
By Michael Harris | Nov 11, 2014

We're proud to present a chapter from iPolitics' columnist Michael Harris's bestselling book about the Harper majority government, Party of One. In the following chapter, Harris describes how budget-cutting and bad messaging put Stephen Harper's government on a collision course with Canada's veterans as the Afghan war was winding down.

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Regards,
The Canadian Veterans Advocacy Team.

New announcement: Injured Ottawa military personnel to wait longer for help (JPSU)

Injured Ottawa military personnel to wait longer for help

David Pugliese More from David Pugliese
Published on: November 5, 2014Last Updated: November 6, 2014 5:47 PM EST

http://ottawacitizen.com/news/politics/injured-ottawa-military-personnel-to-wait-longer-for-help

Injured soldiers in Ottawa will have to wait longer for help because the centre providing them assistance has lost a number of key members, according to a Canadian military document obtained by the Citizen.

Soldiers with more urgent cases, including those dealing with post-traumatic stress illnesses, are being told to call 9-1-1 or visit the Montfort Hospital.

The message was issued last week and sent to the Citizen by soldiers concerned that injured military personnel aren't being provided with the proper treatment.

In his message, Navy Lt. Adam Winchester, platoon commander for Integrated Personnel Support Centre Ottawa, said that there would be changes because of the loss of two of the four section commanders who assist more than 225 injured military personnel.

"Two of our Section Commanders have recently left the IPSC to pursue other opportunities," he wrote. "To that end, members assigned to these individuals will be re-assigned to our two remaining Section Commanders until we find suitable replacements."

"As you can imagine, tempo at IPSC(O) has rapidly increased," Winchester added.

He noted that IPSC Ottawa is one of the busiest such centres in Canada.

The military created the Integrated Personnel Support Centres across the country to offer programs to support and enable mentally and physically injured troops to resume their military careers or, more likely, to be "transitioned out" into the civilian world with sellable skills and jobs to go to.

Staff shortages at such centres have been an ongoing problem, despite the assurances from the military that the system is working fine.

Winchester outlined in his email how the Ottawa centre will operate. He stated that walk-in patients "will be seen eventually, but may not take priority. If you have an emergency or are in distress, please contact 9-1-1 or visit the Montfort Hospital."

For non-urgent requests, injured military personnel can expect a three- to four-week wait.

"For urgent matters (which is ultimately determined at the Regional Level who handle over 500 members), your requests could take up to two weeks," Winchester stated.

The Department of National Defence noted in an email to the Citizen that one of the two vacant positions is expected to be filled by a contract worker starting in early December.

The other vacancy will be staffed by a reservist, DND added. "There has been no impact on services to personnel," according to the DND email.

Soldiers and former soldiers told the Citizen last year that too many IPSC staffers were overloaded, badly trained, ill-suited to the work and often unsympathetic toward the troops they are paid to help.

Injured soldiers posted into such centres complained of being left to their own devices and unsupervised for long periods.

In November 2013, then-Canadian Forces ombudsman Pierre Daigle warned in a report that there were problems at the military's Joint Personnel Support Unit (JPSU), the umbrella group overseeing the centres. The ombudsman noted that there were "acute" staff shortages, leaving those tasked with helping the most damaged Afghan war veterans overworked, often inadequately trained, and in danger of burnout.

The ombudsman recommended increased staffing, better training for all staff, "resilience" training for staff and preparing for "emerging trends" – such as an expected increase in mentally injured soldiers needing help.

"It is essential to staff the JPSU with the appropriate number of personnel, to ensure that these personnel possess the necessary experience and competencies and to support them with suitable training," Daigle said at the time.

dpugliese@ottawacitizen.com

Twitter.com/davidpugliese

CVA would like to hear your story if you are at this JPSU. Please send your info to:info@canadianveteransadvocacy.com

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Regards,
The Canadian Veterans Advocacy Team.