Citizenship and Immigration Committee on Dec. 4th, 2025

[Alexis Brunelle-Duceppe, Bloc, Lac-Saint-Jean, QC]

Why did you answer with that?

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

I work with an expert in the field.

[Alexis Brunelle-Duceppe, Bloc, Lac-Saint-Jean, QC]

It isn't necessary to be an expert. The issue of asylum seekers is linked to an international agreement.

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

Exactly, that's true.

[Alexis Brunelle-Duceppe, Bloc, Lac-Saint-Jean, QC]

My God, you don't seem to be able to answer that clearly. That's part of grade 12 citizenship classes.

The processing of asylum claims is solely under federal jurisdiction. However, it's currently the provinces that have to bear the costs associated with welcoming refugees. That's perfectly normal, since it's a matter of education, health and so on.

The provinces, particularly Quebec, are asking you to reimburse the costs incurred. That's perfectly normal, since it's because of the federal government's astronomical processing times that the provinces and Quebec have to support asylum seekers. When Quebec asks you to reimburse those costs, you say that you're already giving enough money.

Are you telling us that the Quebec government is exaggerating and asking for more money than it costs to take in asylum seekers?

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

I can tell you the exact amounts that Canada has given Quebec for taking in asylum seekers, if you'd like.

Quebec received $1.1 billion because of the pressure from the increased number of asylum seekers.

[Alexis Brunelle-Duceppe, Bloc, Lac-Saint-Jean, QC]

Over what period of time did it receive that money?

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

It's until October 31, 2025.

[Alexis Brunelle-Duceppe, Bloc, Lac-Saint-Jean, QC]

What I want to know is the period over which that amount was given. I could say that I gave $10 billion over 50 years.

[Jean-Marc Gionet]

That's since 2017.

[Alexis Brunelle-Duceppe, Bloc, Lac-Saint-Jean, QC]

Okay.

In 2024‑25 alone, the Quebec Department of Education had to spend $461 million on its education system. I'm not even talking about social and emergency assistance. It's important to understand that when the Government of Quebec asks you for a refund, it isn't because it's trying to rip you off; it's because it has actually spent that money.

Is it possible to reimburse it?

[The Chair, Liberal, Julie Dzerowicz]

Monsieur Brunelle-Duceppe, that's time.

Thank you, Minister.

Thank you, Monsieur Brunelle-Duceppe.

Next we have Mr. Menegakis for five minutes.

[Costas Menegakis, Conservative, Aurora—Oak Ridges—Richmond Hill, ON]

Thank you, Madam Chair.

Minister, let me get back to what I started asking at the end of our previous exchange. I didn't have a chance to get an answer from you.

Minister, where are you planning to get the 15% cuts? We're eight months into this budget already having been spent. Where are you cutting? How many people are you letting go?

There's silence there, and my five minutes are rapidly disappearing.

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

IRCC had already recalibrated a large number of its staffing back in February 2025. It did that at the time because the levels plan was supposed to have 500,000 for permanent residency, and it went down to 395,000. There were 3,300 positions that were already taken out. Now the number is—

[Costas Menegakis, Conservative, Aurora—Oak Ridges—Richmond Hill, ON]

You're asking us for money today, Minister, with all due respect. The budget was presented to us on November 4. In that budget, the very first line on page 311, which deals with citizenship and immigration, says that you are working towards the 15%.

Here's what I'm trying to get at. You're faced with having to cut 15%, but we're not seeing services being afforded to people who are expecting service.

Ms. Zahid mentioned the Hong Kong pathway program. Last Saturday, at the HongKonger Community Center, I met with hundreds of people specifically on the Hong Kong pathway subject, people who signed an agreement, in effect, with the federal government that said if they did this...they would have a pathway to permanent residency. They're looking at delays, Minister, of up to 10 years.

Where are you cutting? Are we going to see services cut as well? These backlogs are getting further and further out.

Let me ask you this. What was the historic high of non-permanent residents as a percentage of the overall population? Do you know?

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

Let me answer your question. There are a number of factors when we consider our budget. There will be no cuts to servicing frontline—

[Costas Menegakis, Conservative, Aurora—Oak Ridges—Richmond Hill, ON]

I understand.

I'd like if you can share with us the historic high of non-permanent residents in the country as a percentage of population.

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

It's 7.59%.

[Costas Menegakis, Conservative, Aurora—Oak Ridges—Richmond Hill, ON]

Well, it's actually 7.4% as of Stats Canada's report on October 1, 2024. Do you know what it was as of this past summer?

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

The number we have for the third quarter of 2025 is 7.26%.

[Costas Menegakis, Conservative, Aurora—Oak Ridges—Richmond Hill, ON]

It was 2.5%, Minister, four years ago. In 2022, it was 2.5%. Today you're looking at 7.1%.

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

You're using different stats.

[Costas Menegakis, Conservative, Aurora—Oak Ridges—Richmond Hill, ON]

No, this is the huge number of people your government has let into the country. There's no amount of spin that will hide the volume of people who were led here. We warned the Liberals, for example, to abolish the TFW program, which you have chosen not to do.

It appears to Canadians that IRCC, your department, has become the human resources department for Tim Hortons. We have kids, children, in Canada who can't find jobs. Youth unemployment in Canada for 18-, 19-, 20- and 21-year-olds in the greater Toronto area is hovering around 20%. They're trying to find jobs, and temporary foreign workers and international students—who really should not be working—are taking their jobs.

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

This is from January to September 2025: We had 150,220 fewer students arriving and 158,660 fewer workers arriving than we did last year. Those numbers are going down. Asylum numbers are going down.

I think what probably hurts is the fact that we are controlling our—

[Costas Menegakis, Conservative, Aurora—Oak Ridges—Richmond Hill, ON]

Have you seen the backlogs?