Debates of Feb. 8th, 2012

The Deputy Speaker Denise Savoie

Pursuant to Standing Order 93 the division stands deferred until Wednesday, February 15, immediately before the time provided for private members' business.

Rick Dykstra Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration

Madam Speaker, I am certainly pleased to have the opportunity to speak to this issue in the House. I welcome the question by the member for Vancouver Kingsway and am very happy that for once we have a member from the NDP standing up in the House and demanding tighter security for those who want to come to this country. Members of the NDP are usually trying to stop the government's efforts to make the immigration system more secure. If this is a step in that direction then having to stay after the House normally rises is certainly worth the wait.

I would also like to thank the Auditor General on behalf of our government for the great work he did. Our government agreed with every one of his recommendations. We are already working toward implementing every recommendation he made. We are concerned about health and security and health screening and that is why we have made many important investments in these areas.

Shamefully, the NDP member for Vancouver Kingsway and his NDP colleagues have voted against every measure we have taken to improve the security of our immigration system. Not only do we agree with the Auditor General's report, but our government is also moving much further with his recommendations, just to ensure that people who are a threat to the health and safety of Canadians do not gain entry to this country.

For example, one of the most important things Canada is doing when it comes to security screening is moving toward implementing biometrics. As a result, no longer will foreign criminals who pose a threat to Canadians and who use false documents or change their appearance be able enter or re-enter Canada. Collecting fingerprints is one of the most effective ways to prevent those who pose a security risk from entering our country. This will also put us in line with almost every other developed country in the world.

I wish I could say that we had the support of the opposition on this matter. The opposition members speak about security and about auditor generals' reports, but when it came to action, they voted against the investment in biometrics.

We have also introduced the most wanted foreign criminals list. Thanks to the help of countless honest and hard-working Canadians, the Canadian Border Services Agency has located 24 foreign criminals and has already removed 11 of them from our country. This list and program have been a success, and are another example of how our government is taking action to ensure that foreign criminals are no longer in Canada where they pose a risk to the safety of Canadians.

I would love to hear my colleague from the riding of Vancouver Kingsway stand up and tell the House and his party that he supports that initiative, just as he says today that he wants tighter security on these issues with respect to immigration.

The Prime Minister also recently announced the action plan on perimeter security and economic competitiveness with the United States. This agreement includes development of robust information sharing agreements that will further ensure that we will know when someone who is a security threat is trying to come to Canada.

There is much more to say, but the point is that the government is taking unprecedented action on screening and in ensuring that Canada's immigration system is secure. With the Auditor General's recommendations, we are going to move that much further and implement those recommendations as well.

Don Davies Vancouver Kingsway, BC

Madam Speaker, what the New Democrats are proud to vote against are bills that the government puts forward that fail to get the job done when it comes to improving our immigration system and serving Canadians and their families. We will continue to vote against bills that fail to get the job done in that area.

The Auditor General noted that his office has been reporting some of the same problems for 20 years. A quality management system was recommended over 11 years ago, and both Liberal and Conservative governments have ignored these recommendations.

It is absolutely relevant to mention the fake citizenship ceremony in this context, because it illustrates the focus of the government. Or maybe it would be more accurate to describe it as the lack of focus of the government, because government is about making choices and distributing public resources in an effective manner. It is about running public programs with integrity and instilling faith in citizens that our government is treating everyone fairly.

There is much work to be done to restore Canadians' faith and trust in the visa system, and that trust is greatly diminished when we see this minister's office forcing public servants to participate in misleading publicity stunts instead of providing public servants with the resources they need to ensure that Canadian families can get their relatives here safely and securely.

Rick Dykstra St. Catharines, ON

Madam Speaker, I find it fascinating that the member for Vancouver Kingsway spent almost no time speaking about the issue he put to the government this evening. Instead he wants to talk about an issue that has nothing to do with the running of government. He spoke about an issue where ministry officials have come forward and acknowledged that a mistake was made and apologized.

That event takes place across this country in dozens of different locations and actually delivers upon something that is critical and important to all of us, our Canadian citizenship. The member very well knows that government's actions with respect to immigration over the last six years, especially over the last couple of years, have addressed the issues, whether security, refugee reform, or ensuring that the family part of immigration when it comes to parents and grandparents is being dealt with.

Safety and security is a priority for the government. If only we had the support of the opposition on some of these issues, members would be amazed at how much quicker we could move forward.

The Deputy Speaker Denise Savoie

The hon. member for Scarborough—Guildwood is not present to raise the matter for which adjournment notice has been given. Accordingly, the notice is deemed withdrawn.

The motion to adjourn the House is now deemed to have been adopted. Accordingly, this House stands adjourned until tomorrow at 10 a.m., pursuant to Standing Order 24(1).

(The House adjourned at 7:40 p.m.)