OTTAWA,ON, June 10, 1999 - Cliff Chadderton, Chairman of the National Council of Veteran Associations (NCVA), stated today that some of the statements by Pat O'Brien, Chairman of the Standing Committee on National Defence and Veterans Affairs, regarding the Committee's report on Merchant Navy Compensation, were incorrect.

"He states that he was unable to find one veteran who would support the Merchant Navy," Chadderton said. "The Legion recommended a lump sum grant of $5,000. The NCVA consists of 34 organizations and represents 250,000 veterans. We supported the Merchant Navy claim before the Committee."

Chadderton noted that six opposition members filed a minority report recommending compensation. "This guarantees a lively debate on the report in the Fall Session," he said.

He added that the Veterans Affairs officials who appeared before the Committee provided misleading information, stating that Canada's program for Merchant Seamen was on par with other countries.

"These officials failed to state, however, that while the other countries have had Merchant Seamen programs in place for some years including Great Britain back to 1939 the Canadian government's programs did not kick in until 1986 and 1992," Chadderton said.

"We must consider, therefore, how much the Canadian Merchant Seamen lost due to the government's callous denial of legislation for them," he said.

At the end of World War II, the government established a comprehensive program for regular Armed Forces members. Transport Minister Lionel Chevrier, who was responsible for Merchant Seamen, denied them access to these benefits, reasoning that they would be needed for a proposed Merchant Fleet after the war. This proposal failed due to the inability to compete with foreign vessels and, in 1949, Prime Minister Louis St. Laurent declared all government subsidies for the Mercantile Marine would cease.

The Committee's report did not recommend compensation for Merchant Seamen, but instead a display and spot on the Canadian War Museum's board, as well as a $1- million scholarship fund for students studying the Merchant Navy.