I hope so. I regret that the critics of our approach have not even bothered to give a nod in the direction of our enhancement of refugee protection that is part of this broader package. When we launched Bill C-11 I announced a 20% increase in the number of resettled refugees that we would accept worldwide. We already accept one out of every ten. We're going to be the number one destination for resettled refugees worldwide per capita following this increase. We're increasing the refugee assistance program by 20%, and that's not coincidental. We're doing that concurrently with these reforms to the asylum system to send the message that we, as a country, can do more to help bona fide refugees, real victims of persecution, ethnic cleansing, and warfare, if we focus our resources on real refugees and not those who seek to abuse our generosity.
Second, we are for the first time creating a full fact-based appeal that will be available to the vast majority of asylum claimants who are rejected at their initial hearing. That means that for claimants from countries generally known to be or could be sources of persecution, those who don't get positive decisions initially will have a full fact-based appeal. This is what so-called refugee advocates have long demanded. This will take what is already considered a model system and add even additional protection for those who might have a negative decision at first instance.
I don't just “think” this, but objectively I believe this reinforces our longstanding humanitarian obligation to refugees.