Government Orders
Mr. Chair, I am going to point to a track record in my first year as a minister of managing migration. The first is that asylum claims have gone down 60% in early 2026 compared to 2024. The second is that new student visas were down 80% in early 2026 compared to 2024. Temporary foreign workers are down—
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Mr. Chair, in fact, the Auditor General found clear evidence of improvements in that there are fewer student visas being issued. I have already talked about the arrivals of these students. It is a significant decrease. Perhaps the member does not want any to come to the country. Perhaps she should be speaking to the universities, provinces, territories, municipalities and people—
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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, actually, I met with union leaders when I went to Sudbury a few months ago. I also meet with union leaders all the time. It is part of what I do. I think we all do that. The important thing here is that these jobs are to fill labour gaps. They are for work in rural communities, in communities where these jobs are needed. There are extreme measures that the Minister of Employment and Wor…
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Mr. Chair, under my express entry category, we continue to prioritize tradespeople such as carpenters, plumbers and machinists. We have been told that these are gaps and that the workers are needed today here in Canada, particularly as we build the country.
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Mr. Chair, we have been clear that Canadians always deserve and should be getting the jobs first. There are strict rules, and they have been tightened considerably for temporary foreign workers in a very targeted way that remains the last resort for employers to find workers. There are some businesses and communities that are still needing them. My job is to manage migration and to invest in our y…
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Mr. Chair, we continue to prioritize trades workers, as I said, such as carpenters, plumbers and machinists. I have personally met with union leaders right here in the House of Commons building, and also in provinces that I have actually visited. We continue to work with them, and we will ensure that our—
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Mr. Chair, as I have indicated, we have a plan. The plan is working. There has been a considerable reduction in the number of temporary workers. We have tightened integrity measures. We will continue to look at those. There are members of Parliament from the opposition who are advocating—
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Mr. Chair, there is worker compliance protection in Canada. Temporary foreign workers have the same employment standards, but there are also rules they have to follow. Businesses also must adhere to strict conditions. These are managed not just by IRCC but also by the employment and workforce department. We work across government to ensure that we manage our immigration system accordingly, appropr…
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Mr. Chair, employers bringing in people under the temporary foreign worker program have strict requirements they have to comply with. They have to show that they have taken considerable measures to find Canadian workers. The ministry of employment and workforce—
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Mr. Chair, we have implemented strict requirements for all employers, which they have to adhere to. The temporary foreign worker program is meant to be exactly that: temporary. However, it is also to ensure that we fill those labour gaps that Canadians cannot fill.
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Mr. Chair, I actually have a lot to say to respond to this particular member, the member for Pierrefonds—Dollard, because he has been a tremendous advocate and has worked very hard for the people in his community but also for vulnerable communities throughout. He has been a real champion on humanitarian issues. What really struck me is that he brought his youth council into his office when they vi…
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Mr. Chair, I want to thank my colleague again. I also thank all members who are spending their time here this evening. Just looking at my watch, I see it is maybe 10 o'clock Nova Scotia time, so I thank anybody who is watching this for being up—
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Mr. Chair, the Liberal government has recognized and registered the IRGC as a terrorist organization, and it is inadmissible to Canada.
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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, IRGC officials are inadmissible to Canada. There is a ban in place. It continues to be there. There are 176 investigations that have been opened by the CBSA.
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Mr. Chair, when it comes to inadmissibility, some travellers are never issued permission to travel. Some travellers have their authority revoked before they travel. Other travellers are deported from airports. There are multiple—
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Mr. Chair, it is important to know that some people with ties to the regime had already been in Canada before these rules took place. Those people are all being investigated and could be removed from Canada.
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Mr. Chair, as I said, 17,800 applications have been reviewed for potential inadmissibility. The IRCC suspended or cancelled 239 visas, and 176 investigations are ongoing with the CBSA.
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Mr. Chair, IRCC and CBSA continue to improve how the immigration and border systems work together. With respect to temporary residents, we are taking steps to help those with status be compliant with immigration law and respect the conditions of their stay.
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Mr. Chair, as I have said, there are consequences for people who do not abide by the conditions and who do not leave. CBSA removed 23,000 inadmissible people last year, and we are launching the pilot to better manage, reduce and enforce overstays.
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Mr. Chair, temporary residents who do not leave Canada once their authorized period of stay has ended face consequences, including removal from Canada and restrictions if they wish to come back.
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Mr. Chair, under a renewed effort to detect fraud, the total number of applications refused for misrepresentation has increased significantly over the last year, and we work with the CBSA to ensure that those who should be removed are removed.
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Mr. Chair, what Canadians need to know is what we have done over the last 12 months. Asylum claims are down, new student visas are down, and temporary foreign worker permits are down. In addition, we passed Bill C-12 to proactively manage the departure of migrants.
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Mr. Chair, as I said, we have passed Bill C-12 to ensure that we protect our borders, that we have integrity in our system and that we reinforce our values. The plan that we have set is working. The numbers of asylum claimants, student visas and temporary workers are down considerably.
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Mr. Chair, the visa application centres are third party providers that support the application process. They collect biometrics. They provide administrative services. They do an important job to keep Canadians safe.
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Mr. Chair, let me, for the record, say that the IRCC VAC network includes 164 locations in 109 countries. We have an extensive network around the globe. They work to ensure that our system remains integral.
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Mr. Chair, I would like to begin by thanking my colleague, the member for Madawaska—Restigouche, for his hard work over the past decade on behalf of his community in New Brunswick, as well as the Canadian francophone community and Acadians. I want to congratulate him once again on the research and the work he did before entering politics to support official language minority communities. It has be…
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Mr. Chair, for the benefit of my colleague, perhaps he does not know that we have established a dedicated express entry category for surgeons, physicians and clinical specialists. The good news is that we have issued 391 invitations to apply already.
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Mr. Chair, first, let me begin by thanking the member for Spadina—Harbourfront for her real advocacy. She is a real champion for people who need humanitarian protection and for settlement organizations. I did visit with her, in her community, Centre francophone, and I saw the great work the settlement organization is doing. I very much appreciated her remarks, particularly when she referred to the…
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Mr. Chair, I really appreciate these questions and, in fact, question period this week. There have been quite a few questions posed on that. I am happy to respond to all of my colleagues' questions tonight.
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Mr. Chair, again, I am going to repeat, for the member's benefit, what we have done over the last year. We have now reduced the asylum claims by 60% in the early months of 2026, compared to 2024. I know that members keep talking about what it was a couple of years ago, but we are living in today's world.
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Mr. Chair, the estimates that we have here are really what we are here to talk about: $4.4 billion, a 15% reduction from last year. Some of that reduction is due to the fact that our asylum claims have gone down.
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Mr. Chair, again, as I said, our asylum numbers are going down. We have introduced moderate changes to the system, and we are facilitating permanent residence applications for doctors in Canada.
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Mr. Chair, I appreciate the question. Under my watch, in October 2025, the federal government ceased having any asylums in any hotels in this country.
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Mr. Chair, as I said, as of October 2025, the federal government is no longer in the hotel business. We do provide funding to municipalities to have reception centres so they can help the people on the ground.
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Mr. Chair, provinces, territories and municipalities manage shelters. The IHAP funding that the federal government provides is based on local needs and priorities, including, yes, reception centres and transitional housing.
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Mr. Chair, the very good news, as I have been saying for the last few hours and actually for the last few months, is that the asylum numbers are decreasing.
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Mr. Chair, I believe I answered that at one point at committee, but these agreements are public knowledge. They are public and they are viewable. I invite the member to look at them.
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Mr. Chair, I do not know what the issue is with the member, except to say that these funding decisions are based on need, on expected results and on value for money. Would he like the municipalities to entertain people on the streets? The federal government is helping municipalities with the asylum claimants. The number of asylum claimants is reduced. We brought in Bill C-12. There are lots of mea…
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Mr. Chair, the French language is fundamental to Canada. I agree with that. We are going to work harder with all the respective parties and come up with policies to ensure that the French language is very important.
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Mr. Chair, as I said, protecting the French language in Quebec and across Canada is one of our government's top priorities.
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Mr. Chair, we are working closely with the Province of Quebec and with the minister responsible for francization, but I think that the member knows that Quebec sets its own economic immigration threshold.
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Mr. Chair, we recognize the role played by Quebec. We also recognize that Quebec plays an important role in immigration. When it comes to people who have not yet immigrated, it is up to Quebec to decide, and it is also up to the individuals themselves to decide where they want to live. I am very proud that we are working with the Province of Quebec. It is also a really nice place to visit.
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Mr. Chair, I have already answered this question several times in English, but I can also answer it in French. Quebec has received over $1.1 billion to cover these costs. Furthermore, the number of refugee claims has fallen by 71%.
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Mr. Chair, as I said, protecting the French language and protecting all of our provinces, including Quebec, are very important to me, to the Liberal Party and to all members here. I hope the same is true for all members of the House of Commons.
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Mr. Chair, I thank the member for London Centre for his tremendous work and for being a super parliamentary secretary. He works extremely hard for his constituents and for Canadians on this file. Let me talk a bit about talent attraction, about what exactly we are doing and why these estimates are so important. We are prioritizing top international talent through new ways for doctors with work exp…
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Mr. Chair, first, let me commend the member for Halifax and let her know how much I enjoy working alongside her in her constituency and also right here in Ottawa. She is a passionate leader who has already done a tremendous amount of work for the municipality of Halifax prior to entering federal politics, or any politics for that matter, and who understands the value that newcomers bring to our pr…
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Mr. Chair, with Bill C-3, this government acted to protect the value of Canadian citizenship by putting in clear rules in terms of descent—
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Again, Mr. Chair, there is high interest, in the media and everywhere else, by people who are interested, but high interest and even applications do not necessarily mean people are getting citizenship.
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