A software program that could end much angry debate between injured soldiers and Veterans Affairs Canada has been stuck in the federal bureaucracy for over a year.
Canada's veterans watchdog has been pushing for the application to be made available online so former members of the military and RCMP can calculate their individual eligibility and accessibility to the department's Byzantine series of programs.
"We're very active in trying to get Veterans Affairs Canada to modernize its ways, if you wish," Guy Parent, the veterans ombudsman, said in a recent interview with The Canadian Press.
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Having better information at their fingertips could only help those who approach the department, said Parent.
"It is a fantastic piece of work that helps identify a veteran — or the family of a veteran — by service, and it can lead you right to the programs, benefits that are accessible to them."
The software program, developed by two officials in ombudsman's office, was originally intended for agency staff so they could quickly determine whether a complainant had a case and where they fit in to the system.
It is similar in complexity to online applications long in use by banks and insurance companies.
After going through several revisions and updates through the years, the navigator program was handed over to the department in 2010 in the hope it would be put on the government's website.
But so far, it has been the subject only of a pilot program for the department's internal use at a regional office in Winnipeg, and was recently made available to call-centre staff.
The plan is to roll it out to the entire department early this year, said veterans affairs spokesman Simon Forsyth.
Veterans Affairs Minister Steven Blaney is said to be enthusiastic about its potential and wants to see it in the hands of the public, said Parent.
Forsyth didn't specify when that might happen and critics were skeptical whether it'll ever go that far ....