HALIFAX -- The federal government has announced plans to expand access to beds at a Halifax veterans' hospital, after the Nova Scotia Tories criticized Ottawa for denying a 91-year-old British veteran a place at the facility.
Veterans Affairs Minister Seamus O'Regan announced the move in a tweet Wednesday night, saying 25 beds at the Camp Hill hospital will be opened to "Allied and modern day veterans."
The decision came amid controversy over the case of Gordon Smith, who served with the British Royal Navy during the Second World War.
He wasn't a Canadian citizen at the time, but he put in 18 years with the Royal Canadian Air Force after immigrating to Canada.
Nova Scotia Progressive Conservative veterans affairs critic Alfie MacLeod called on Ottawa to reverse its decision denying Smith a bed at Camp Hill, saying all Canadians who served in the military should be treated with respect.
He said Smith served Canada for decades and Commonwealth soldiers fought and died together during the Second World War -- service he said should mean something.
