As a result of their deliberations committees may make recommendations which they include in their reports for the consideration of the House of Commons or the Government. Recommendations related to this study are listed below.

Recommendation 1

That Veterans Affairs Canada abolish the category of “wartime service veteran” in its Policy on Disability Benefits in Respect of Wartime and Special Duty Service  – The Insurance Principle and list only those areas of conflict or military operations that qualify for disability compensation under the Insurance Principle.

Recommendation 2

That the Minister of Veterans Affairs introduce a bill amending sections 69 and 70 of the Veterans Well-being Act to add to the powers of the Minister of National Defence the power to assign to past, present or future military operations the following designations:

• “war emergency operation” when a military operation takes place further to a proclamation of a “war emergency” under the Emergencies Act (such a designation would be applicable to both the First and Second World Wars); and
• “war zone operation” when a military operation is carried out in defence of a state other than Canada and the situation would likely have justified the proclamation of a “war emergency” by that state if the criteria of the Emergencies Act were in force there, without a “war emergency” having been proclaimed in Canada (such a designation would be applicable to, among others, the Korean War, the Gulf War, the war in the former Yugoslavia and the war in Afghanistan).

Recommendation 3

That the Department of National Defence provide the Committee with a document explaining in greater detail the reasons for the policy prohibiting the dual recognition of medals and undertake a review of this policy.

Recommendation 4

That Veterans Affairs Canada enter into immediate consultation with Gulf War veterans in order to implement, before the 35th anniversary of the Persian Gulf War in 2026, commemorative measures that will, in the veterans’ view, recognize the inestimable value of their service.

Recommendation 5

That Veterans Affairs Canada recognize the cluster of chronic symptoms referred to as “Gulf War Syndrome” as a compensable medical condition, that it collaborate closely with Canada’s allies—particularly the United States—on assessing its root causes, and contribute to research into the causes of the illness.