VANZ improving services to Veterans

The Minister of Veterans' Affairs, Hon Judith Collins, speaking to the National Executive Committee of the RNZRSA, outlined what Veterans' Affairs is doing to improve services provided to veterans, and to reduce waiting times when processing applications. Staff changes within Veterans Affairs are already paying dividends.
All calls now go through specifically trained staff who provide information about general inquiries, send out forms, applications, etc, and make appointments when necessary.
This service has already significantly reduced the number of calls being put through to Case Managers, who now concentrate on dealing with applications.
The Minister said there has to be a better understanding by Veterans of the services being provided by VANZ. Although staffing has not been reduced, the number of enquiries and applications has exceeded all predictions over the past two years. New systems will assist staff to respond more quickly.
The Minister iterated that the Government has not placed a ‘funding cap’ on the level of funds available for War Disablement Pension support. The Minister asked that this be passed on to Veterans to raise awareness.