Citizenship and Immigration Committee on Feb. 12th, 2009

[Devinder Shory, Conservative, Calgary Northeast, AB]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Ms. Chow has brought this forward with, it seems, good intentions, but I want some clarification on the wording. My understanding is that for in-Canada spousal applications, there is one person who makes the application and one person who sponsors the applicant.

[Olivia Chow, NDP, Trinity—Spadina, ON]

That's right.

[Devinder Shory, Conservative, Calgary Northeast, AB]

Well, this says any applicant who has filed their first in-Canada spousal or common-law sponsorship application.

[An hon. member]

Yes--

[The Chair, Conservative, David Tilson]

Order. Through the chair, please.

Go ahead.

[Devinder Shory, Conservative, Calgary Northeast, AB]

The application for permanent residency in Canada is made with the applicant who wants to be a permanent resident of Canada, and that person has to be sponsored by someone. So what does it mean when it says it's their first in-Canada spousal sponsorship? Are we talking about the applicant or the sponsor?

Thank you.

[The Chair, Conservative, David Tilson]

Ms. Chow, it appears there's another question for you. Or maybe you have no comment, and that's fine too.

[Olivia Chow, NDP, Trinity—Spadina, ON]

I wasn't the person who added “in-Canada spousal”. As I recall the discussion at the time, I think it was to apply to people who have not been previously sponsored. For example, it's my first marriage; it's not that I've been married, someone sponsored me, and then it didn't quite happen or I've been divorced.

So I think that was the intention.

[The Chair, Conservative, David Tilson]

Ms. Mendes.

[Alexandra Mendes, Liberal, Brossard—La Prairie, QC]

If I may, I think the question here is that there are two applications in this process, one for sponsorship and one for permanent residency. Obviously, yes, you have to have both, so you have to add something about permanent residency to make it a proper motion.

[The Chair, Conservative, David Tilson]

Are you making an amendment to the motion, Ms. Mendes?

[Alexandra Mendes, Liberal, Brossard—La Prairie, QC]

May I make an amendment?

[The Chair, Conservative, David Tilson]

You sure can.

[Alexandra Mendes, Liberal, Brossard—La Prairie, QC]

Yes, to add an application for permanent residency. The process has to have both.

[The Chair, Conservative, David Tilson]

Where will that go, Mr. Clerk? Where do you want it?

[Alexandra Mendes, Liberal, Brossard—La Prairie, QC]

You would add it for “any application...who has filed their first in-Canada spousal or common law sponsorship application as well as a permanent residency application”.

[Jim Karygiannis, Liberal, Scarborough—Agincourt, ON]

Accompanied by.

[Alexandra Mendes, Liberal, Brossard—La Prairie, QC]

Accompanied by a permanent residency application, yes.

[Olivia Chow, NDP, Trinity—Spadina, ON]

Yes, a friendly amendment.

[Alexandra Mendes, Liberal, Brossard—La Prairie, QC]

Mr. Shory's totally right, it needs to have both.

[The Chair, Conservative, David Tilson]

Okay, so are we treating this as one motion? She's agreed, so that's one motion.

Ms. Wong.

[Alice Wong, Conservative, Richmond, BC]

I'm proposing an amendment. After the words “the following motions to Parliament”, I would like to add “and allow the government the opportunity to respond”. Right now we have already brought a lot of technical challenges here, so I would like to see that the government would have the opportunity to respond.

[The Chair, Conservative, David Tilson]

Where do you want that?

[Alice Wong, Conservative, Richmond, BC]

Right after “the motions to Parliament”; and then instead of a semicolon, put a colon and add “and allow the government the opportunity to respond” and then colon.

[The Chair, Conservative, David Tilson]

After the word “Parliament”.