Thank you very much, Mr. Chair.
I support the amendments to the Federal-Provincial Fiscal Arrangements Act because I think it makes good sense and logic to do it. The provinces are responsible for setting the residency terms under the health care act and it's the provinces that administer social assistance in their respective jurisdictions. It seems logical to me that the federal government should live up to its principles of allowing the provinces to carry out their functions without interference. This is an anachronism that exists in the law and I think it should be changed. Remember that there's no compulsion whatsoever on the provinces to make changes. It's removing a penalty and allowing them, if they wish, to impose residency requirements on individuals.
The only categories that are touched by this possible disaster—as outlined by Mr. Showler—are temporary foreign workers, temporary students, and visitors to Canada. It has been pointed out, by officials who have come before you, that these three categories are only allowed into Canada upon evidence that they can look after themselves and be responsible for their housing and their care while here.
If a province wanted to put on residency requirements—which is unlikely to happen—the two categories that could be affected are asylum claimants and the groups I've just mentioned. In terms of the asylum claimants it seems to me that's the problematic area. If you look at it carefully you'll find there is a lot of assistance available, financial and otherwise, for asylum claimants even if a province should insist on residency requirements.
The federal government gives grants to the provinces for assistance in the settlement of immigrants, refugees, and asylum seekers. I have some figures here. In 2010-11 the provinces received $893.4 million for the purpose of looking after immigrants, refugees, and asylum seekers and helping them settle. That's a lot of money. It's given to the provinces. In addition to that, the Department of Citizenship and Immigration has a considerable fund to give grants to non-governmental organizations and other agencies in Canada that are responsible for looking after and helping asylum seekers, refugees, and immigrants.
In the period from October 1 to December 31, 2009, over 200 organizations in Canada received more than $25,000 in grants from the federal government to carry out those functions. There were 60 organizations in Canada that received more than $1 million. The purpose of these individual organizations—that were mainly ethnic groups, non-governmental organizations, or other agencies in the provinces and in cities of Canada—was to care for and look after immigrants, refugees, and asylum seekers who were in need. That's a considerable amount of money that's being paid.
The department—in 2010-11 in its estimates—set aside $651,749 for that; close to a billion dollars. If one of the provinces chose to decide to put residency requirements on asylum seekers I think there is plenty of opportunity for them to get assistance and help other than from the social welfare system.
I might point out that in the United States asylum seekers are not allowed to work for the first six months that they're in the United States and they get their assistance primarily from non-governmental organizations and other agencies that are funded by the U.S. government.
As I said, if by any remote chance a province might apply residence requirements on asylum seekers as a result of this amendment to the act, they would have ample opportunity to get the assistance and supplies they need without going to the federal or the provincial government.
I think another factor that's important here is that when we're dealing with failed asylum seekers, there was a time when there were many thousands of them. For example, in 2008 we had 33,000 asylum claims. They came from 188 different countries. We had 2,300 claims from American citizens. We had claims from 22 of the 26 European Community countries. But as a result of the, in my view, very needed and essential reform in the 2012 legislation, the number of asylum seekers coming in from so-called designated countries has been cut completely off. We're getting very, very few asylum claims from the United States, England, Germany, and Switzerland compared to what we used to get before the bill was passed in 2012. The result is that whereas it used to take up to a year, or two years or more, in some cases, to have an asylum claim adjudicated, it now takes between two and three months. There's a quick decision being made.
I would presume that most of the failed asylum seekers choose—because they choose to come here on their own—to go back to their country, where it's been proven that there is no concern, that they are not genuine refugees as defined in the UN convention.
My concluding word is that this is a housekeeping amendment. I don't see all of the dire consequences that have been outlined to you by Mr. Showler and others who will come before you. It's a simple housecleaning episode and we should get on with it.
Thank you very much.