Evidence of meeting #61 for Citizenship and Immigration in the 44th Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was afghanistan.
A recording is available from Parliament.
Bloc
Alexis Brunelle-Duceppe Bloc Lac-Saint-Jean, QC
As Minister of International Development, are you not able to tell me whether or not you agree with the fact that Canada is selling arms to a dictatorship?
Liberal
Harjit S. Sajjan Liberal Vancouver South, BC
What I'm telling you is that as Minister of International Development, I'm focused on international development and making sure that the feminist international assistance policy—
Bloc
Alexis Brunelle-Duceppe Bloc Lac-Saint-Jean, QC
You know that weapons create humanitarian crises, Minister.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Salma Zahid
I'm sorry for interrupting.
We will now proceed to Ms. Kwan.
Ms. Kwan, you have two and a half minutes.
NDP
Jenny Kwan NDP Vancouver East, BC
Thank you very much.
I want to be clear on your former chief of staff's role, Minister. You indicated that you were busy during that time with other business, so you asked your chief of staff to take care of inquiries from others about wanting to help bring Afghans to safety. Is that correct?
Liberal
Harjit S. Sajjan Liberal Vancouver South, BC
My chief of staff's role.... With the work that I'm doing, he's executing that as well. For example, he's coordinating the work that we needed done. Because we had so many people calling—
NDP
Jenny Kwan NDP Vancouver East, BC
I'm sorry, Minister. I have only two and a half minutes, so I'm going to have to cut you off there.
Liberal
Harjit S. Sajjan Liberal Vancouver South, BC
—I was passing on the information. I didn't want to get bogged down.
Liberal
NDP
Jenny Kwan NDP Vancouver East, BC
I'm trying to be clear on the process and what you instructed your chief of staff.
He was asked to look into inquiries from people who wanted to get to safety from Afghanistan, and then to provide them with information on the proper process, following the government process of the emails and contact information that the government has put on the public record. Is that correct?
Liberal
Liberal
NDP
Jenny Kwan NDP Vancouver East, BC
Minister, I don't know if you understand my question. My question is not about what the process was, but rather what your instructions were for your chief of staff.
NDP
Jenny Kwan NDP Vancouver East, BC
not about what the process was, but rather what your instructions were for your chief of staff.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Salma Zahid
Ms. Kwan, perhaps you can allow the minister to answer the question. I think the opportunity should be given to the minister to answer the question.
Liberal
Harjit S. Sajjan Liberal Vancouver South, BC
You asked me a question, and I'm trying to tell you exactly what took place.
Because we were getting a lot of inquiries, we were trying to make sure the people who possibly had legitimate concerns had the appropriate phone number or the right people to contact so we didn't miss anybody.
My chief of staff's main work was not that. It was just to make sure that if somebody had something, whether it was a senator or anybody who potentially needed to get somebody out, we didn't want to lose that opportunity. My direction was that if somebody had a name, that needed to be triaged by the appropriate decision-makers who were looking at it, and that was not our department. We wanted to make sure the information could be provided to them so that the names could go to the right place.
NDP
Jenny Kwan NDP Vancouver East, BC
They were then referred to IRCC, to GAC or to another ministry. Is that correct?
Liberal
Harjit S. Sajjan Liberal Vancouver South, BC
Keep in mind that there was an interdepartmental team working at that time. We were trying to immediately send that information to the right people so that information could be triaged by the right folks.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Salma Zahid
Ms. Kwan, your time is up.
We will now proceed to Mr. Redekopp for five minutes, and then end this panel with Mr. Ali for five minutes.
Conservative
Brad Redekopp Conservative Saskatoon West, SK
Thank you, Madam Chair, and thank you, Minister.
You mentioned that you did talk on the phone with Senator McPhedran. How many times did you talk with her on the phone?
Liberal
Harjit S. Sajjan Liberal Vancouver South, BC
Right now, I remember one. There might have been a second time.