Thank you very much, Mr. Chair.
Good morning, committee members. I am very happy to join you here this morning in my new role as the Minister of Border Security and Organized Crime Reduction, and also to be joined by senior officials in the relevant departments. As many of you are aware, I am very new to the job, but the issues we are discussing are not unknown to me, having served in a large metropolitan community and having to deal with these issues.
The challenges posed by irregular arrivals in Canada straddle a number of federal organizations, represented at the table today, including the CBSA, the RCMP, the Government Operations Centre and, of course, the ministries of Public Safety Canada and Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. I hope that in my new role I will have the opportunity to support my colleagues, Minister Goodale and Minister Hussen, in making sure that we connect all the dots among all levels of government and stakeholders—provincial, territorial, municipal, and international—to ensure that all of our obligations are fulfilled. I also hope to make sure that we are addressing irregular migration as efficiently and effectively as possible.
Yesterday, I had the opportunity to visit Lacolle. It was very clear to me that our front-line law enforcement and border services personnel continue to perform their duties in a professional and highly effective manner. They are managing that difficult situation exceptionally well.
Ensuring the security of our border and the integrity of our rules-based immigration and refugee protection system continues to be a top priority for the Government of Canada. We will continue to make the point loudly and clearly, as Minister Goodale has already stated, that there is no free ticket to Canada. There are rules and procedures that must be followed.
However, while we remain committed to enforcing every Canadian law, we are also committed to honouring all of Canada's international obligations. As this committee well knows, one of those obligations is to provide refuge for those who are in genuine need of our protection. People seeking asylum in Canada are treated with compassion, and they are afforded due process under the law. While the number of irregular migrants has dropped significantly in recent months, thanks to increased government efforts I believe we are well prepared for any further influx that may arise in the future.
We have a national strategic response plan that is now in effect, based on lessons that have been learned and best practices that have arisen from our collective experiences since 2017. We have also made significant investments of $173.2 million, through budget 2018, to support security operations at the Canada–U.S. border and the processing of asylum claimants. This funding will be used to provide short-term processing and security screening supports at our border. It will also help support decision-making capacity for the Immigration and Refugee Board, which in turn would lead to more timely removals of those who are found to be without a valid claim.
As the situation at the border evolves, we will continue to work closely with our provincial counterparts and municipalities to manage any pressures and concerns. This includes looking at all available options in terms of interim and long-term lodging, as both the Government of Canada and the provinces have a role to play. To that end, I've had the opportunity to meet with the responsible minister in the Province of Ontario, and we are continuing our outreach and close co-operation with provinces and municipalities on this issue. The federal government has been working closely in the past with Ontario and Quebec on secondary migration issues, such as moving asylum seekers outside of large metropolitan areas like Toronto and Montreal.
We also remain closely engaged with our counterparts in the U.S., including U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials. In addition, the Government of Canada continues to reach out to diaspora groups that are headed toward the border, largely based on misinformation. These outreach efforts have been successful. For example, last year they reduced the number of Haitian asylum seekers coming to Canada. We are now working with the U.S. and Nigerian governments to make sure that Canadian rules, laws, and border procedures are well understood by any potential asylum seekers from that country.
Mr. Chair, the government has a plan to manage irregular migration flows. We will work closely with our domestic and international partners to ensure that the plan is implemented.
I look forward to the opportunity to answer your questions. Thank you very much.