Thank you very much, Mr. Chair.
Thank you to the minister and his officials for agreeing to be here today.
I want to start with a fundamental question.
Minister, in your comments just now, you said, quote, that “this provision is out of date”, referring to the excessive demand provision, and that you want to bring the policies more in line with a Canada that is to be inclusive of people with disabilities. We also have a variety of laws in place, namely the charter of freedoms, in terms of our commitment to equality and human rights, and our provincial and federal human rights legislation. As well, Canada is a signatory to the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
Now, if you take a look at all of those rights in the context of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act, you will note that this provision is in fact contrary to those protected rights. To that end, is really the only option in going forward to do away with the provision of excessive demand? No matter how you tinker with the policy and its application, it is not going to align with those stated rights in our charter and our human rights legislation, as well as the fact that Canada has signed on to the UN declaration.