Cabinet shuffle cannot hide that Stephen Harper fails Canadian veterans

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OTTAWA – The Leader of the Liberal Party of Canada, Justin Trudeau, today issued the following statement on the removal of Julian Fantino as Minister of Veterans Affairs:

“This Prime Minister has rejected the sacred obligation we have to our veterans, and he handpicked a Minister who joined him in denying this obligation. Shuffling Mr. Fantino into another Cabinet role will, regrettably, not fix this shameful situation.

“Under Mr. Harper’s leadership, veterans service centers across the country have been closed, $1.13 billion in essential service funding has gone unspent, and many veterans have been left waiting up to eight months for urgently needed mental health care. Furthermore, the Prime Minister has cut almost 1,000 jobs across the Veterans Affairs department since 2009, seriously hindering frontline services dealing with disabilities, pensions, health, and rehabilitation programs.

“It is clear that Mr. Harper is wholly responsible for his government’s failing of our veterans.

“Liberals will continue fighting to ensure that our veterans and their families have nothing less than the best of care and support from a grateful nation.”