Citizenship and Immigration Committee on Dec. 4th, 2025

[Fred Davies, Conservative, Niagara South, ON]

Respectfully, Minister, you lead the charge when it comes to legislation like this. If you had recognized the importance and relevance of the amendments we put forward, you would have championed them in the House and not had them wholly rejected by the House. You lead this portfolio, and these were important amendments that this committee accepted.

I find your answer confusing, because it had nothing to do with the Senate; it had everything to do with what recommendation you brought to cabinet.

[Lena Metlege Diab, Liberal, Halifax West, NS]

If you're talking about the lost Canadian legislation.... Is that what you're talking about?

[Fred Davies, Conservative, Niagara South, ON]

Yes, but it's effectively a chain migration model. The people who are eligible through that model could be criminals who have served time and been convicted and released, but because of a loose connection to Canada, they would automatically have access to Canada without a background check, without a language requirement and without knowledge of Canadian history.

Why would those reasonable recommendations be rejected?

[Lena Metlege Diab, Liberal, Halifax West, NS]

I believe the committee had a chance to hear different perspectives on that. There were things made.... It went to the House of Commons—

[Fred Davies, Conservative, Niagara South, ON]

We did. We recommended changes, and they were accepted.

[Lena Metlege Diab, Liberal, Halifax West, NS]

—and it went to the Senate. That has now been dealt with, until....

[Fred Davies, Conservative, Niagara South, ON]

You're okay with allowing in people who may have served time, may have criminal charges, may have criminal convictions in other countries, have a loose connection to Canada and could ultimately obtain Canadian citizenship. Is that correct?

[Lena Metlege Diab, Liberal, Halifax West, NS]

We have a robust system that would deal with that. Those who have—

[Fred Davies, Conservative, Niagara South, ON]

The legislation doesn't require the robustness to take place. They are automatically entitled to Canadian citizenship.

[Lena Metlege Diab, Liberal, Halifax West, NS]

We were talking about people who were born after 2009, or whatever the date was, who were—

[Fred Davies, Conservative, Niagara South, ON]

We're also talking about subsequent generations.

[Lena Metlege Diab, Liberal, Halifax West, NS]

—infants and children.

[Fred Davies, Conservative, Niagara South, ON]

We're also talking about subsequent generations—in perpetuity, actually.

[Lena Metlege Diab, Liberal, Halifax West, NS]

From here on in, it will be newborns, largely.

[Fred Davies, Conservative, Niagara South, ON]

It's newborns and their newborns. If somebody goes to jail—

[Lena Metlege Diab, Liberal, Halifax West, NS]

It's if they have a tie to Canada.

Again, we dealt with all of this before. Today, we're here to talk about the estimates. I actually have the CFO and a lot of representatives here to answer valid questions on that.

[Fred Davies, Conservative, Niagara South, ON]

On that, let me move on. IRCC is requesting $17.1 million more for grants and contributions for the interim housing assistance program. This funding goes to provincial and municipal governments to address extraordinary interim housing pressures.

Can somebody define for me what “extraordinary” means? Is this in any way similar to the housing program that asylum claimants used to commandeer hotels in key tourist zones in my area of Niagara?

[Lena Metlege Diab, Liberal, Halifax West, NS]

We'll find you that information, but I will tell you that, as I believe I said last time, there are no people in hotels anymore who are housed by the Government of Canada. That has ended. We've had a large number of asylum claims the last couple of years. Our asylum numbers—

[Fred Davies, Conservative, Niagara South, ON]

I'm looking for clarity.

[Lena Metlege Diab, Liberal, Halifax West, NS]

—are now down by a third.

[Fred Davies, Conservative, Niagara South, ON]

I'm sorry. I have limited time, Minister.

I'm looking for clarity, because this money is going to provincial and municipal governments. What oversight do you have, what conditions and terms are these municipalities bound by to obtain this money and where is the money going?

[Lena Metlege Diab, Liberal, Halifax West, NS]

There are agreements, and they are obligated to provide stats and figures based on the agreements.

[Fred Davies, Conservative, Niagara South, ON]

For what?

[Lena Metlege Diab, Liberal, Halifax West, NS]

They're for what the funding is used for and the number of people.

[Fred Davies, Conservative, Niagara South, ON]

That's what I'm trying to get to the bottom of. The funding is for housing assistance, but can you define that? What is “extraordinary”?