Thank you for the question.
That's exactly right. The issue with postponements was the interplay between the 60 days that was required under the regulations and the number of members we had at the time to hear those cases.
The way the practice worked before changes were made was that IRCC or CBSA would receive the file, and then, under the regime, needed to schedule a hearing within the 60-day time period without, unfortunately, any regard to whether there was a member at the IRB able to hear the case. When intake exceeded our processing capacity to such an extent, it was natural that cases would be scheduled with the IRB, but there would not be members to hear those cases. They were understood in the counsel community to be, frankly, notional dates that would then be rescheduled once the IRB took control of the file.
Since the audit, it's interesting to note that two things have happened.
One, the IRB, in collaboration with IRCC and CBSA, took control over its own schedule. Rather than a notional date being established, IRCC or CBSA provided a notice to appear to the claimant, but we set our own schedule in terms of the date on which that individual would appear, and it is aligned with when a member is available.
Two, as a result of budget 2018 investments, we were able to hire more members. Therefore, there were more members available to hear the cases.
As a result of those two variables and our ability to schedule cases that were considered to be more hearing-ready because they were older cases, we were able to, since the audit, reduce the postponement rate from, as I mentioned, 65% to 36%. Whereas member unavailability was a contributing factor during the audit at 49%, that has now come down to 30%. During the audit period, member unavailability was 50% of a 65% problem. Since the audit, it's 30% of a 36% problem, which in real terms means that one out of every 10 or 11 hearings is being postponed now as a result of member unavailability. That number is going down in the right direction.
More work needs to be done, and we have identified the ways we intend to pursue that in the management action plan.