Citizenship and Immigration Committee on June 7th, 2016

[Rev. Majed El Shafie]

I don't think so. If we have an honest and healthy discussion and we hear about all perspectives of the story.... Quite honestly, you have to understand that we have a very big problem in Canada. It is called political correctness. Political correctness is the very cancer in our Canadian society. This is the reality. That is what we are facing here. The truth, the reality is that our political correctness will never help this nine-year-old Yazidi girl whom they used to rape nine times a day.

[Michelle Rempel, Conservative, Calgary Nose Hill, AB]

Thank you.

Mr. Dyck and Ms. Emory, you both alluded to the fact that the needs of other refugees must be met. With a very brief answer, do you feel that the needs of other refugees from other parts of the world are perhaps not being met or prioritized equitably, given the focus on the Syrian refugee initiative?

[Brian Dyck]

Thank you for the question.

I think that there are efforts, and I have been in discussion with the immigration department about their plans for that. They have plans for that. There was a very deep hole dug in terms of backlogs in a lot of the African missions, and they are working on that. We have hope that, as we talk about levels plans for 2017, 2018, and 2019, this will be taken into consideration.

[Michelle Rempel, Conservative, Calgary Nose Hill, AB]

Just to be more precise, the government has said that it is not treating other cohorts of refugees differently, that there isn't an impact. Do you believe that there has been an impact on other cohorts of refugees?

[Brian Dyck]

From what I have seen in terms of arrivals this year, there have been a lot of arrivals from African missions. New cases aren't being put in because the backlogs are there, but there is hope that in the year to come, there will be more opportunities.

[Michelle Rempel, Conservative, Calgary Nose Hill, AB]

Ms. Emory, I would ask you to answer. Keep in mind that we are writing a report to deal with this, so your frankness is appreciated.

[Leslie Emory]

One thing that comes to mind, for sure, is the cost of transportation being covered for the Syrians but not for other refugees. That is a big factor, a big difference.

[Michelle Rempel, Conservative, Calgary Nose Hill, AB]

Perhaps on that note, in terms of cost, during the campaign the government said that the entirety of the Syrian refugee initiative would cost $250 million. We are now seeing the cost around $1 billion.

I read your report, which was issued in February. Your report was about language training capacity being limited, mental health services, and all sorts of things. You are asking for more resources, and you are asking that a significant amount of more money be put in this.

Do you feel that the government adequately costed and budgeted the...? We all want to help this cohort when they come to Canada, but do you feel that there needs to be more planning, or that perhaps there hasn't been an adequate costing done in terms of the overall cost of services, to provide services to this refugee group?

[Leslie Emory]

I can't speak to the costing that is happening on the government side. I can certainly say that, with the large number of refugees in the community needing language instruction, child care, and all those things, there isn't the full capacity to support them at this point in time.

[Michelle Rempel, Conservative, Calgary Nose Hill, AB]

Something I am very concerned about is the ability, specifically for women in the Syrian refugee group, to access language training, as I believe it is leading to isolation. Could you speak to this and what your experience has been? Are you seeing some refugees being isolated due to lack of language training services?

[Leslie Emory]

I think that in the case of Syrian refugees, women without the language and often with large families, with those factors together, tend to be isolated. What we need to do is introduce programs that work for them and work with their lifestyle to bring them into the community, and offer, for example, alternative language instruction models with child care.

[Michelle Rempel, Conservative, Calgary Nose Hill, AB]

You all talked about the root causes of forced migration. Do you think Canada's response to prevent the root causes of forced migration has been adequate?

Ms. Emory, go ahead.

[Leslie Emory]

I think—

[The Chair, Liberal, Borys Wrzesnewskyj]

I believe you are both out of time, and I think it would be—

[Michelle Rempel, Conservative, Calgary Nose Hill, AB]

You took 10 seconds of my time. Perhaps the witness could answer briefly.

[Leslie Emory]

I don't really know. It's one of those things where there is so much need. The need is so great and the government is stepping up in the current context. Could more be done? Absolutely.

[Michelle Rempel, Conservative, Calgary Nose Hill, AB]

Thank you.

[The Chair, Liberal, Borys Wrzesnewskyj]

Ms. Kwan, you have seven minutes, please.

[Jenny Kwan, NDP, Vancouver East, BC]

Thank you very much, Mr. Chair, and thank you to all the witnesses.

My question is for Ms. Emory.

You mentioned there are a number of areas where there are gaps with respect to resettlement. We touched on the language training.

I wonder if you could share any information on the situation with wait-lists. Are Syrian refugees waiting to get into language training, for example? I know that is the case in British Columbia; there's no question about it. In the meantime, the LINC funding in British Columbia is actually being cut. I wonder if you could elaborate on that for me.

[Leslie Emory]

There a couple of issues with respect to LINC language training, and one of them is child care. If it's imperative that the mother have child care while she's attending LINC classes. She will face wait-lists, because all of the seats that include child care spots are currently taken.

Also, to say what we said before, they're often not looking for full day classes. They'd like to have other models of learning where maybe they come in the afternoon, bring their children, and share child care. The structure as it exists now is not suitable for many.

[Jenny Kwan, NDP, Vancouver East, BC]

On the question around poverty—and you touched on that, as well—Syrian refugees are on an income assistance rate. Then, after 12 months, they continue to be on an income assistance rate. We have already seen, because of the high cost of housing, that many people are heading to food banks and the like. Of course, come the 13th month, if they have not been to a language class, the probability of their finding employment is even more diminished. Therefore, their reliance on income assistance increases.

To that end, the suggestion in your comments, I think, was to increase income assistance rates. Would you support, for example, the minister convening a meeting with his provincial and territorial counterparts to talk about how we are going to manage this issue for Syrian refugees, and other refugees for that matter, from the federal side, and then, for the provincial counterpart, that's pretty well for anybody who is on income assistance?

[Leslie Emory]

Absolutely. That would be a great idea.

[Jenny Kwan, NDP, Vancouver East, BC]

On the question around housing, this is a major critical problem, as well. We've heard from other presenters to this committee who talked about the issue of housing. First, people were stuck in hotels for a very long time. There are still some families, by the way, with a larger family size who are still there and it's three or four months since they arrived. Many of them who have been moved to permanent housing are in undersized housing and inadequate housing. Already the rent subsumes a large amount of their income.

To that end, in your comment, you suggested a national housing program and rent subsidies and the like. I wonder if you could share with us how extensive the problem is in housing in your communities. I know it is big in my community in British Columbia, but it would be good to get a broader view about what's happening across the country.

Ms. Emory and perhaps Mr. Dyck, as well....

[Leslie Emory]

I can say that in Ottawa, there is big concern around what will happen in month 13. Many of the refugees got into a housing scenario where there were subsidies in the first year, and they're receiving their payments and whatnot. When they move into month 13, invariably their overall income goes down, and then housing becomes precarious as a result.

The question is whether they will be really ready and able, at that point, to secure sufficient income to cover off the costs they will have. I think for many of the Syrian refugees, that won't be the case. They will run into financial hardship in month 13.

[Jenny Kwan, NDP, Vancouver East, BC]

Mr. Dyck.