Thank you, Mr. Chair.
I'd like to thank the members of your team, Minister, for taking the time out of what is no doubt an incredibly busy schedule to be here before this committee.
As I listen to you, it almost sounds as though your government hadn't been the government for the last eight years and that wait times were simply and exclusively caused by the former government. For anyone listening to this deliberation at home, immigrants waiting years and years to get word on whether their parents or grandparents will be able to unite with them here in Canada, your deliberations today offer cold comfort, as they do for the parade of people who come to our offices asking for help.
Through these estimates, we see that CIC is getting extra funds for operating expenditures. What isn't clear is how these funds are going to reduce wait times for families waiting to reunite or for live-in caregivers waiting to get their permanent residency. There are outrageously long waits for those in that program. The moratorium on parent and grandparent applications will continue in January, with a limit of 5,000 applications per year. People are already facing excessive wait times to reunite with their families. According to your own website this morning, the waits are more than eight years for countries like China, India, the Philippines, and Sri Lanka.
If the CIC is receiving more money for its operations, why is this cap in place? How are wait times going to come down for those who have been waiting for years for permanent residency through the live-in caregiver program or for their parents and grandparents?