Thank you, Mr. Chair and colleagues. Of course, we're all delighted to be back here on this very warm day, because I think we missed each other. We haven't seen each other in a while. I just want to address in broader terms this issue that we've been discussing now for well over a year, at least in the time since I've been on this committee.
On May 22 we passed a motion to study this issue during the summer. I know that was passed by consensus of all parties. Therefore, there's no question that this is an important issue that everyone wants to discuss and to be able to work out. But it's important to understand that there's been extensive engagement on this issue by the government, by the minister. There's been a plan from the outset that has developed over time, and that's what we've seen in the last two and a half years, a plan that has evolved commensurate with what's been happening at our border. If you look at our committee alone, we have discussed this issue on five separate occasions since last year. On five separate occasions we've had discussions.
Our minister has appeared here on six different occasions, if I'm not mistaken, to outline the work that he has done. The majority of the work and the questions that were asked of him were related to the border crossings. If you look at May 24—that's the day we had a committee of the whole—Minister Hussen spoke extensively to Parliament on many aspects of this issue. The staff has done an enormous amount of work, because every time they have come to committee they've been given piles of homework and they have continuously responded to every single request made by us or to the vast majority of the requests. Some may still be outstanding, but my recollection of this is that the vast majority of the requests made by individual members have been responded to by the staff.
Therefore, there's extensive information. The plan is quite clear. Notwithstanding this, there has been a culture, and frankly and sadly a very concentrated effort on misinformation.
Ms. Kwan, I fully endorse your assessment of the use of language in this context. It's very important and I think it's very easy to vilify people. I think that's what we've already done in some respects because of the type of language that has been used by many around government and many around our opposition. I think that's been harmful and it's going to do irreparable harm for the individuals who are actually here.
If we look at the debate that's ongoing, it is really divisive. I don't think it's constructive. It's divisive based on the politics of fear. We are “othering” those who are coming here. We've gone through this process a number of different times in our country's history and I don't think it's been helpful. I don't think it's been helpful when we circle a group of people and say that they are undesirable, or they're illegal, or they're not welcome here. It's a very dangerous road that we are taking. It's a very dangerous path, which I believe will really tarnish us in the long term. Notwithstanding that, we do believe is that every single one of those people is entitled to due process, and that's what they are getting.
I also want to just note that in the last two months and if you go back to early January, February, and March, as we sat through question period and many of the discussions, of course our friend here consistently maintained that it was anticipated that 400 or 600 people would be coming across the border every single day. In fact that was the assertion made by the Conservative opposition for a number of months, and, lo and behold, in April, which was the height of this issue, we had 83 asylum claims per day, not 400. In May we had 57 asylum claims per day, and in June we had 39.
In that sense, our numbers from April have been halved, or reduced by 50% in the last two months, and represent the lowest numbers of asylum claims since last June. While these numbers may go up and down, the reason I say this is that a lot of what we're hearing is based on a great deal of hysteria and misinformation, and really, efforts to try to divide Canadians on this issue.
Getting to the motion, I think it's very important to study the issue this summer. We have no particular opposition against it. However, I would like to expand on Ms. Rempel's motion, her notice of motion. I'd just like to amend it so that we would have a broader, more fulsome discussion on this issue.
Therefore, Mr. Chair, if you would indulge me, I'd like to read an amended motion at this point. Basically, it reads—and please stop me, Mr. Clerk, if I read it too fast—that, pursuant to Standing Order—