Government Orders
Mr. Chair, we worked very hard. There was Bill C-12, and we also made changes with things—
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Mr. Chair, I really appreciate this discussion here tonight because it is really important. It affects a lot of people. We take that very seriously. Criminals, whether Canadians, visitors or whatever their status is in Canada, will be held responsible by the law. The courts do their best. If they are non-Canadians, the CBSA investigates. Our priority is to always protect Canadians.
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Mr. Chair, the Government of Canada made a commitment for certain numbers, and we are fulfilling that commitment to the best of our abilities.
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Mr. Chair, I will repeat again that IRGC officials are inadmissible to Canada. There have been 17,800 applications reviewed for potential inadmissibility, and 239 visas have been cancelled by the IRCC.
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Mr. Chair, again, these are essential services for the most vulnerable of the population, and they are aligned to the services social services clients receive in the provinces and territories.
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Mr. Chair, again, I will repeat that these are temporary essential services for vulnerable individuals. They are for the most vulnerable population.
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Mr. Chair, I said that serious crimes deserve serious consequences. The CBSA has deported, as the public safety minister said today, 23,000 people. There is nothing in the immigration law that allows for discounting sentences. Sentences must be proportionate to the crime and the context. As I said, we are—
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Mr. Chair, we are working with the provinces and territories on achieving that objective.
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Mr. Chair, I will answer in English. As I understand it, right now at the Standing Committee on Citizenship and Immigration, there is an ongoing study about that. I very much look forward to receiving the results of that study.
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Mr. Chair, I welcome my colleague across the way. I have not seen him since we were at the United Nations together. He knows that the IRB is an independent body.
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Mr. Chair, we have seen successes. I have already said that there has been a 71% decrease in asylum claims in Quebec. With the passage of Bill C‑12, we are also going to see more—
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Mr. Chair, there are two things. The first is that the department has investigated each and every case flagged. The second is that we brought in Bill C-12, which would eliminate all the irregularities of those who filed but should not have filed.
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Mr. Chair, as I said, Bill C-3 provides clarity, structure and control to citizenship by descent, and there are also strong safeguards to uphold the integrity of citizenship.
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Mr. Chair, it is a wonderful question, because I was a provincial minister of immigration for eight years. Immigration is a shared responsibility between the two levels of government, and in my job, I will continue to work with the provinces and territories accordingly.
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Mr. Chair, as I have already said, we have significantly reduced the number of asylum seekers and we are working harder with the provinces and territories to resettle them as well.
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Mr. Chair, I want to say a few words about the people of Quebec. They are very welcoming people, and we thank them all. However, the federal government has also done its part and—
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Mr. Chair, I am not sure to whom he is referring. In 2024, we raised the financial requirements for all international students coming to Canada to study, and those are adjusted every year in September as well.
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Mr. Chair, as I said, we are awaiting the committee's report because I hope my colleagues will also have useful insights for us.
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Mr. Chair, criminals are deported by the CBSA after sentencing occurs. If they are sentenced appropriately, action is taken.
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Mr. Chair, again, I cannot speak to any specific case because that is not my role here tonight. What I can say and reconfirm is that serious crime deserves serious consequences.
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Mr. Chair, the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act does not include anything on this type of treatment. We treat all offences seriously. The CBSA deports individuals as needed.
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Mr. Chair, we all have youth in our communities and homes. We want them to have good jobs and good opportunities. Right now is a great time to bring forth that there are thousands and thousands of Canada summer jobs that are available in every single riding in this country. I would recommend to the member that—
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Mr. Chair, again, I know it is an important subject. I appreciate my colleague. I know he cares; otherwise, he would not be asking me the question. I do appreciate that, but again, as I said, these are temporary, interim federal health measures for vulnerable—
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Mr. Chair, I want to thank the member for Beauport—Limoilou for the work he does in his community. As he said, back in January, I spent a great day with him and representatives of incredible community organizations working hard on the ground to welcome and support newcomers to Quebec. I especially want to thank the Centre R.I.R.E 2000, the Service de référence en perinatalité pour les femmes immig…
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Mr. Chair, we do have a youth unemployment rate. There are many factors in that rate. The rate has recently been rising. The temporary foreign worker program—
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Mr. Chair, we have very strict rules for employers looking to hire temporary foreign workers. It was this government that tightened the rules as well to ensure that it is a last resort.
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Mr. Chair, I think the Conservatives have a real problem with this. I just want to say that the government has acted to protect the value of citizenship by passing this piece of legislation and ensuring that people value our citizenship and our Canadian—
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Mr. Chair, we share Canadians' concern, and we are working to ensure that we manage migration responsibly, because that is what Canadians expect. I have worked very strongly with all provinces and territories. In fact, so far we have held five meetings together.
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Mr. Chair, we have a proactive response to all misconduct, and action is appropriately managed. There have been some who have been fired.
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Mr. Speaker, as I have said the last number of days, the Parliamentary Budget Officer confirmed what we already know and that is this health program provides limited, temporary, essential health coverage for vulnerable people. The cost is tied to volumes. The good news is our volumes have gone down by 59%. Taxpayers will save over $200 million annually because of the IFHP changes that we have inst…
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Mr. Chair, the IRB is an independent body. It has to adhere to Canadian law, and that is exactly what it is doing.
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Mr. Chair, again, if a person in Canada has committed a crime, they are investigated by the Canada Border Services Agency, and there are consequences.
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Mr. Chair, the IRB has a number of officers. They are appointed for certain terms, and it goes through an OIC process.
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Mr. Chair, again, what we did in this piece of legislation was ensure that citizenship by descent cannot be passed on indefinitely. We have provided clarity, we have provided structure, and we have provided control to citizenship by descent.
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Mr. Chair, serious crimes deserve serious consequences. It does not matter who criminals are and what status they have in Canada.
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Mr. Chair, anybody can claim anything. However, there is a requirement that proof of ancestry at every chain must be established.
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Mr. Chair, welcome to you. The IRB is an independent body. It does set its rules according to the law of the land. We have a Constitution, and we have laws we also adhere to.
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Mr. Chair, all serious crimes should be dealt with by the courts, by the laws and by the board, and there are consequences that criminals face.
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Mr. Chair, again, if the question relates to the IRB, it is an independent body, as I said. It does report to Parliament. There are laws in the country that it has to adhere to, and we expect it to do that.
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Mr. Chair, as the member knows, two days ago, we held a press conference in which we put immigration measures in place to protect the safety of Canadians.
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Mr. Chair, if we find a person in Canada who has committed a crime, Canada Border Services Agency investigates that, and they could become inadmissible.
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Mr. Chair, IRCC has followed up with 100% of flagged cases.
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Mr. Chair, I am going to say it one more time: IRGC officials are inadmissible to Canada. There is a ban in place. CBSA works forcefully to remove them, and we are investing in our policing and our officers to do exactly that.
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Mr. Chair, let me just set the record straight. In my first year as minister, we had a 59% reduction in asylum claims in early 2026 compared to 2024, temporary foreign work permits are down 75% in 2026 compared to 2024, and new student visas—
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Mr. Chair, as the federal immigration minister, I have no evidence of that.
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Mr. Chair, let me go back to the member's other question for a moment. We have tightened all kinds of rules and restrictions and have made penalties for all our consultants.
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Mr. Chair, there have been 239 visas cancelled by IRCC and 176 investigations by the CBSA.
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Mr. Chair, as we have said, IRGC officials are inadmissible to Canada. The government has put a ban on them, and that ban continues to be in place.
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Mr. Chair, I very much appreciate that question. Absolutely, we are honouring the accord. Absolutely, we are working very hard with the Province of Quebec and its immigration minister.
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Mr. Chair, again, I am delighted that everybody wants to come to Canada, but just because they want to come and are expressing their delight in coming, it does not mean they are going to be able to come. There are clear rules in place, and we are monitoring the impact.
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