Citizenship and Immigration committee  I think it's clear that everyone agrees that finding a way to deal with unfounded claims is important. I think the Balanced Refugee Reform Act tried to deal with that concern by expediting the process to make sure that people wouldn't be here for a significant amount of time if t

Citizenship and Immigration committee  There are many people who make claims that are unfounded, who may face risks back home, but there's some question as to whether the degree of risk is sufficient. If you have a 1% chance of being killed back home, is that enough? If it's a 2% chance, if it's a 10% chance.... So th

Citizenship and Immigration committee  You mentioned the case of Mexico. I agree that a fair, effective, and fast refugee determination process is much better than a visa requirement imposed on Mexico. I think everyone agrees with that. That said, though, the mere fact that grant rates for Mexico are somewhere around

Citizenship and Immigration committee  Yes. Not only did Australia back away from mandatory detention for those reasons, but also, they found that it was extremely expensive. I think that's something that should also be kept in mind. Detention is very expensive, especially if there are other alternatives available.

Citizenship and Immigration committee  Only to reinforce what Barb has said, that the pace of change through ministerial orders over the last six months really has been remarkable.

Citizenship and Immigration committee  Yes, me neither.

Citizenship and Immigration committee  I don't think it complies with the charter, no.

Citizenship and Immigration committee  Well, there is access to judicial review. Judicial review is not an appeal. It's not an appeal on the merits.

Citizenship and Immigration committee  I think it relates to the question of the stakes involved in refugee determinations. If people are refugees, it means that they have a well-founded fear of persecution, torture, or death. And if we don't recognize them as such, they could be sent back to a country where they will

Citizenship and Immigration committee  Trying to enhance consistency at the first instance, at the refugee protection division, is an important objective. Even if there's some way of enhancing first instance decisions, one of my points is that errors are inevitable even in the most robust processes in Canada. In crimi

Citizenship and Immigration committee  I don't think we should leave the system the way it is. I am pleased to see, for example, in the Balanced Refugee Reform Act, that the government finally indicated that it was going to implement the refugee appeal division. This is something that the people who have been working

Citizenship and Immigration committee  It doesn't allow for an appeal on the merits for certain groups of claimants including those—

Citizenship and Immigration committee  —from designated safe countries. Those are not the only people who don't get access to an appeal. Designated foreign nationals don't get access to an appeal. People who come to Canada via the United States don't get access to an appeal. People who have their refugee claims cessat

Citizenship and Immigration committee  To come to Canada from the United States, you have to fit into a narrow exception from the Safe Third Country Agreement. That includes things like having family members in Canada. It's perfectly reasonable for someone who is a refugee, who happens to find a way to the United Stat

Citizenship and Immigration committee  For the second half of the presentation.