Response from Minister on BOI Follow-Up Report

13 April 2017

Mr. Gary Walbourne
National Defence and
Canadian Armed Forces Ombudsman
100 Metcalfe Street, 12th Floor
Ottawa, ON K1P 5M1

 

Dear Mr. Walbourne:

Thank you for your letter of March 22, 2017, with which you enclosed a copy of your report entitled Support to Bereaved Military Families: Collaborative Review.

I am particularly please to see the shared commitment of your office and the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) on this important issue. Families who have made the supreme sacrifice through the loss or serious injury of a loved one in the name of Canada deserve the best possible support.

I concur with your recommendations.  While there are many helpful programs and services in place for grieving families, there are clearly gaps, both in documentation and in how we prepare CAF personnel to communicate with families at a most vulnerable time.  The Working Group struck by the Chief of the Defence Staff will carefully examine how to address these gaps to ensure that families receive effective, consistent and valuable information.

Thank you again for providing me with a copy of your report and for your continued support to the men and women in uniform and their families.

 

Yours sincerely,

 The Hon. Harjit S. Sajjan, PC, OMM, MSM, CD, MP

Date modified: