I move, Chair, that Bill C-12 be amended by adding after line 23 on page 18 the following new clause:
39.1 Subsection 94(2) of the act is amended by striking out “and” at the end of paragraph (e.1), adding “and” at the end of paragraph (f) and adding the following after paragraph (f):
(g) measures taken to ensure that persons whose claim is determined to be ineligible under section 101 do not receive federal benefits, except for emergency health care.
Colleagues, there has been over a 400% increase in people who have been using the interim federal health program since the Liberals took power, from 84,967 users in 2016-17 to a whopping 426,750 in 2024 and 2025. At the same time, the median Canadian medical wait time to see a specialist went from 20 to 30 weeks. The cost to taxpayers for the interim federal health program has dramatically increased, from $66 million in 2016 to—wait for it—over $821 million in 2024, with little to no explanation from the government. There was over $456 million of taxpayer money spent on supplementary coverage in 2024 and 2025 alone. Many of these benefits the regular and average Canadian would not receive, such as mental health support, prosthetics and eyewear. Also, I would just note, 6.5 million Canadians currently lack access to a family doctor.
The interim federal health program was set up and designed to provide medical care to people who are coming to Canada as refugees who were fleeing war zones. I think about people who are welcomed to Canada as refugees under a motion I put forward and work that I did to bring Yazidi genocide survivors to Canada. However, at this point we now have 300,000 people in the asylum backlog queue, and many, if not most, of these claims will be found to be bogus.
What happens, and what we've heard tonight, is that the government has a very difficult time enforcing removal orders, and that includes people who have failed asylum claims. During the time after somebody is deemed ineligible as an asylum claim, they are still eligible to access federal benefits. Now, I believe that somebody should have access to emergency benefits that relate solely to emergency health care. Of course, you want somebody in Canada to have access to emergency health benefits, but as to everything else, the insanity has to stop somewhere. This is a common-sense amendment that will not only restore the public's trust that the asylum system is working but also reduce incentives to abuse the system. If somebody has an asylum claim that is deemed ineligible, and they know they can't continue to receive federal benefits, then perhaps they will stop appealing and leave.
This is where we're at in the country. We have to restore sanity to Canada's asylum system. Colleagues, this is a common-sense way I'm sure colleagues across the country who have struggled with issues would support. It's going to restore that compassionate sense of the asylum system as well. It's going to focus it on people who actually need it.
Colleagues, I hope you will support this amendment. I think this will do a lot to restore public confidence in Canada's asylum system.
Thank you.