Citizenship and Immigration Committee on March 8th, 2021

[Marco Mendicino, Liberal, Eglinton—Lawrence, ON]

Ms. Kwan, I want to reiterate what I said right off the top, and this is very important. We are soberly aware of the risks of operating in any foreign environment. That is why every single person who works for our contractors in our visa application centres, as well as our subcontractors, is screened and vetted to a reliability status.

More than that, we have in place the surveillance and video that are required to monitor every single interaction that requires uploading information and biometric information that is sensitive. Once that information is uploaded to a government system, it is then erased. We monitor the compliance with those checks and balances, and we routinely conduct audits so we can be sure that our immigration system has its integrity. We will continue to do that, as well as monitoring ongoing risks in that environment.

[Jenny Kwan, NDP, Vancouver East, BC]

Thank you, Minister.

Is the minister aware that the subcontractor, the general manager, is a CCP member chosen by the Chinese government?

[Marco Mendicino, Liberal, Eglinton—Lawrence, ON]

Ms. Kwan, as I said, we will continue to vet every—

[Jenny Kwan, NDP, Vancouver East, BC]

I'd like a yes or no. Is the minister aware at all?

[Marco Mendicino, Liberal, Eglinton—Lawrence, ON]

Ms. Kwan, I was in the process of trying to answer your question. What I said was that we vet every single person who works for the visa application centres, as well as those who are subcontracted, as well as working closely with our partners, including at PSPC, who conduct corporate security checks with regard to the ownership of these contracts. We will continue to monitor those arrangements as we go forward.

[Jenny Kwan, NDP, Vancouver East, BC]

In that case, then, the minister would have known that. Isn't that sufficient for the government to cancel this contract, given that the government decided to cancel the X-rays that are being used in the embassies that are built by Chinese authorities? Isn't this enough for this contract to be cancelled?

If you were putting forward an application in that environment, would you not be concerned?

[Marco Mendicino, Liberal, Eglinton—Lawrence, ON]

Ms. Kwan, as I have said now on a number of occasions that I share your concerns. We closely manage and monitor the rights of operating there—

[The Chair, Liberal, Salma Zahid]

I'm sorry for interrupting, Minister, but the time is up.

We will have to move to our second round of questioning. We will start the second round of questioning with Mr. Saroya.

Mr. Saroya, you have five minutes. You can please proceed.

[Bob Saroya, Conservative, Markham—Unionville, ON]

Thank you, Madam Chair.

Thank you, Minister. It's always good to see you here.

Minister, there was a huge report this past weekend regarding new immigrants who immigrated to Canada in the last four or five years. A number of them are going back. The number was scary. They said tens of thousands of people are moving back to their home countries.

Are you aware of this? How many people are going back, and why are they going back? What are we going to do to keep them in this country?

[Marco Mendicino, Liberal, Eglinton—Lawrence, ON]

I know one thing, Mr. Saroya, and that is that in 2021 we plan to welcome 401,000 new permanent residents. In January, we made great strides towards that goal. In February, we delivered the single largest-ever draw from an economic and Canadian-experienced talent pool here in Canada.

Canada has been lauded around the world for its immigration system and for the way in which it integrates newcomers into communities by providing opportunities to take up work in some of the most essential parts of the economy. That includes in the health care sector, where, as you know, Mr. Saroya, our doctors, our nurses, our support workers, who've been going flat out, need reinforcements.

At the very core of our immigration plan is the belief that by welcoming those who possess those skills and experience, we will be able to accelerate our economic recovery and get beyond COVID-19. In the course of so doing, we hope those who have come will be encouraged to stay for the long haul. That's what we hope they will do.

[Bob Saroya, Conservative, Markham—Unionville, ON]

Thank you, Minister.

We have 401,000 people coming this year, in 2021. Only 184,000 came last year. What will you do differently to make sure we meet our goal?

The biggest issue is in the GTA. You are from the GTA, Minister. It used to be in the Surrey—Newton riding in B.C., and now it's in the GTA. I get tons and tons of complaints from the GTA regarding the New Delhi issues. People are saying nobody's answering their phones. There are plenty of issues in New Delhi. What are we going to do to fix the New Delhi issues?

[Marco Mendicino, Liberal, Eglinton—Lawrence, ON]

First, as you know, with regard to our operations abroad, we work closely with source countries, which have to take their own decisions with regard to where they are in the pandemic. In terms of what we are doing here in Canada, which is within our control, we have added resources. As I said, we added 62 new jobs to accelerate progress on family reunification.

In addition to that, we're moving more of our processes online and we are creating policy flexibility to minimize the disruption that has been caused by COVID-19. The early progress we have made in 2021 shows signs of that progress. That, to me, is a demonstration of our resolve to achieve the goals of our 2021 immigration plan. By doing so, we will create jobs, we will create growth and we will accelerate our economic recovery. That is what we are focused on.

[Bob Saroya, Conservative, Markham—Unionville, ON]

I have something different, from a different angle.

For the start-up visas, if you go on the website it says 12 to 16 months. When the people who applied for the start-up visas a year ago go back now, they say the wait time is 31 to 34 months. Are we creating a new backlog here?

[Marco Mendicino, Liberal, Eglinton—Lawrence, ON]

No, in fact I believe you'll see that we are making progress in reducing those processing times, not only with regard to the many pathways I've already mentioned but also when it comes to our visitor visa programs, including the start-up visa program, which was an innovation we created in collaboration with the private sector.

I have heard routinely from tech companies and self-starters who identify the start-up visa program as an incentive to come and invest in Canada by enticing those who wish to start a company. An example is ApplyBoard, started by the Basiri brothers who are international student graduates. They started a company here and are now able to encourage additional investments by helping international students navigate their way in Canada.

That sends a very strong signal to the rest of the world, to talent from around the world, that Canada is a place to invest in. Canada is a place to start that next idea, that next business, and through the start-up visa program, as we continue to make progress on our processing times, I believe we'll see more outcomes through this pathway.

[Bob Saroya, Conservative, Markham—Unionville, ON]

Mr. Mendicino, instead of 12 to 16 months, if the wait is 34 months and we keep taking new applications—

[The Chair, Liberal, Salma Zahid]

I'm sorry for interrupting, Mr. Saroya. Your time is up.

We will now move on to Madame Martinez Ferrada for five minutes.

Please proceed.

[Soraya Martinez Ferrada, Liberal, Hochelaga, QC]

Thank you, Madam Chair.

Minister, thank you for joining us today.

I wanted to discuss open work permits and students with you. A few times during our study on the pandemic, a number of actors from all education sectors shared their concerns about a large number of foreign students not completing their final year project.

Student body management, university presidents, as well as former students who have had to stop working owing to the pandemic, explained that, when post-graduation work permits expire before their holders have been able to gain sufficient work experience, the long-term plans of those who must stay in Canada are severely impacted.

As you know, foreign students are excellent candidates for permanent residence in Canada. It is extremely important to make efforts to preserve their ongoing contribution to our country and our economy, especially during a pandemic.

Can you tell the committee members about the new provisions of the post-graduate work permit program?

[Marco Mendicino, Liberal, Eglinton—Lawrence, ON]

First of all, I would like to say that I fully agree with the comments of my colleague, my extraordinary parliamentary secretary. Thank you for your work.

With regard to international students, as you know, Madam Chair, this class of immigrants contributes over $21 billion to our economy every year. So there are many reasons to invest in that and to continue to look for ways to support this class of immigrants.

That said, it isn't just an economic priority. We know that international students contribute to our social fabric with their diversity and the experience they've gained outside Canada. Both of these values must be protected, which is why this class of immigrants has greater flexibility.

For example, we've made work permits more flexible. Students can start their courses abroad while they wait to return or come to Canada. We've even created more opportunities to take courses online. These are two concrete examples of our ongoing support for international students.

[Soraya Martinez Ferrada, Liberal, Hochelaga, QC]

Thank you for your response, Mr. Minister.

I wanted to touch on Hong Kong. During our study on Hong Kong, some things struck us. Several Hong Kong residents [technical difficulties] about their peaceful demonstrations, and witnesses wondered with some trepidation whether the officers processing their cases were aware of the environment and the rapidly evolving situation in Hong Kong.

I know the government invested resources in the Immigration and Refugee Board, the IRB, and has asked it to seek efficiencies at all times to improve its flexibility, its processing times and the accuracy of its decisions.

Can you tell us more about the changes implemented at the IRB to make it easier for Hong Kong residents to come to Canada?

[Marco Mendicino, Liberal, Eglinton—Lawrence, ON]

Madam Chair, we are continuing to invest in this administrative tribunal. It's critical to advancing the processing of all refugee protection claims. The board has made a lot of progress in the last year, taking advantage of the pandemic to move things forward. I think they've made over 40,000 decisions in all areas related to the board. That's good news for everybody.

I share the point of view of—

[The Chair, Liberal, Salma Zahid]

I'm sorry for interrupting, Minister. The time is up.

We will now move on to Madame Normandin.

You have two and a half minutes for your questions.

[Christine Normandin, Bloc, Saint-Jean, QC]

Thank you very much.

Mr. Minister, I'll continue my questions on sponsorship. We know that the Canadian embassy in Cuba was closed long before the pandemic, which causes many problems for people waiting for sponsorship, who have to do their medical examination or interview in Trinidad and Tobago or Mexico City. This is virtually impossible during a pandemic.

I have two questions about this.

What steps are being taken right now to reopen the embassy in Cuba?

Why can't we encourage that visitor visas be issued so that the medical examination, among other things, could be done in Canada?

[Marco Mendicino, Liberal, Eglinton—Lawrence, ON]

I thank the hon. member for her question.

I wanted to correct something in my last answer. The board actually rendered 35,000 decisions. I apologize to Ms. Ferrada for that.

In response to Ms. Normandin, as I said, we work with the governments of the various countries. We need to work with them during the pandemic. All of our offices abroad must follow the rules that are in place in the country to protect not only the people who are there, but also our public servants working there, not to mention the immigrants who want to be part of the process.

The most important message I want to share with the committee is that over the past year, the process has been generally effective in bringing in foreign workers, and that we are continually making the improvements necessary to allow us to continue to support Canada's economy.

[Christine Normandin, Bloc, Saint-Jean, QC]

Thank you very much.

Since a motion of the House has asked that Raif Badawi be granted citizenship, I have already mentioned, Mr. Minister, that I would come back to this subject.

I'd like to know what steps have been taken to follow up on the will of the House.

[Marco Mendicino, Liberal, Eglinton—Lawrence, ON]

Ms. Normandin, as you know, the government clearly understands that this is a human rights issue. I respect the views of the House expressed in the context of this motion. I work very closely with—