OTTAWA – NDP Leader Jack Layton celebrated another victory for veterans today as the NDP motion for a state funeral for the last Canadian WWI veteran passed unanimously in the House of Commons.
“Ordinary Canadians across this country want to honour and remember the last of this Great Generation. Close to 90,000 Canadians have already signed the Dominion Institute’s petition calling for a state funeral for the last Great War veteran. With the adoption of our motion today, Canadians can collectively celebrate the sacrifice of all WWI veterans,” said Layton.
The motion, introduced in the House of Commons today by NDP critic for Veterans Affairs Peter Stoffer (Sackville – Eastern Shore) states:
That, in the opinion of this House, the Government of Canada should honour all who served Canada in the First World War by sponsoring a state funeral on the passing of the last Canadian veteran of this Great War.
“Canada’s veterans are our greatest heroes and our country’s greatest volunteers. Offering a state funeral for the last Canadian veteran of the First World War is a fitting and symbolic tribute to recognize the great personal sacrifices of those who have served and who are currently serving our country,” said Stoffer.
This victory for veterans and all Canadians comes just two weeks to the day after the NDP’s Veterans First Motion passed in the House of Commons. The Veterans First Motion ensures that Canadian Forces veterans and their families are taken care of, not just during their service days, but throughout their lives by addressing unfair deductions and restrictions on the pensions of veterans and their spouses.
“Afters years of broken promises to veterans by the Liberals and opposition to pension reform from the Conservatives, the NDP is proud to ensure that veterans are getting the recognition they deserve, once and for all,” said Layton.
The  approved a  for the last standing World War I veteran Tuesday. Three of them are still alive, Percy Wilson, who is 105 years old, Lloyd Clemett and John Babcock, both 106. They are the last three living veterans among the 619,636 Canadians who served between 1914 and 1918.

The motion, introduced by the , was favored by all party leaders. The motion was prompted by an online petition by the , a national organization which promotes Canadian history.

State funerals in Canada, by tradition, are reserved for prime ministers and governors general. This bill, which is now in affect in Canada, means that state funerals are not only for prime ministers but for people who have served the country.

"We want to thank the tens of thousands of Canadians who signed our petition in support of state funeral," said , the director of the Dominion Institute. "By passing a motion to offer a full state funeral today the Parliament of Canada will allow a grateful nation to pay proper tribute to our last Great War veteran on his passing and honour the over 600,000 Canadians he served with under arms from 1914-1918."

Australia, also held a state funeral for the final veteran of the . A State Funeral was offered for Steve Irwin in September 2006, but the offer was declined by his family's wishes. Canada is the fourth country to have a funeral honoring the last war veteran that served in any war.

"We won't be able to look them in the eyes anymore and thank them for their service the way we should for everyone who is willing to serve our country the way they did and our armed forces personnel still do," NDP Leader Jack Layton said.

Since November 6, around 100,000 Canadians had signed the online petition.