OTTAWA — Prime Minister Stephen Harper hailed a new veterans' charter as a first step in thanking former soldiers for their contribution to Canada.

The new compensation package for veterans was created last year by the former Liberal government, and came into effect this week.

The prime minister said the charter will be followed by a veterans' bill of rights and a new veterans' ombudsman to be introduced by his Tories.

"Past and present, you embody the highest attributes of citizenship and loyalty to our country: courage, fortitude and bravery in the face of danger," Harper told a group of veterans.

"Our troops' commitment and service to Canada entitle them to the very best treatment possible.

"This charter is but the first step towards according Canadian veterans the respect and support they deserve."

The new charter is the most comprehensive overhaul of veterans' benefits in decades.

With the average age of classified veterans now only 36 and getting younger, the government is returning to a post-Second World War model that helped former soldiers reintegrate into the work force.

It also offers more generous compensation packages for soldiers injured or suffering post-traumatic stress, or for the families of those killed.

Some Second World War veterans have complained, however, that the new charter takes away more from older veterans than it offers.

But a handful of veterans' groups were on hand for a Parliament Hill event celebrating the new charter.

And one of Canada's most famous soldiers applauded the initiative.

Senator Romeo Dallaire, who suffered extreme post-traumatic stress after witnessing the Rwandan genocide in 1994, said the charter will help future soldiers like him.

"This charter would permit me to go back to school, to get formal training," Dallaire said in an interview.

"But let's say I'm too injured -- that I can't be retrained -- then my wife would then benefit from that capability so the family could still have access to a program that would allow it to become more independent financially."