Thank you, Mr. Chair and committee members, for inviting us to speak today.
My name is Shannon Grainger. I'm the senior assistant deputy minister responsible for international affairs, including border policy, at Public Safety Canada. I am pleased to be here today along with my colleagues from throughout the portfolio to talk about our ongoing work to manage our border.
Public Safety Canada, in particular, plays a central and strategic role in border management, focusing on policy leadership, coordination and resource allocation to ensure both national security and the smooth flow of goods and travellers. We work closely with the agency colleagues represented here, as well as with the Canadian Security Intelligence Service.
Canada and the United States share the longest land border in the world. Our two countries have a long-standing history of working together to keep our border secure while enabling the efficient flow of goods and people.
Both countries face similar challenges, including irregular migration, human smuggling and illegal drug and firearms trafficking fuelled by organized crime. To successfully tackle these challenges, we have worked together with our American counterparts, and we do this at both policy and operational levels.
Public Safety Canada is the main Canadian interlocutor with the United States Department of Homeland Security, or DHS. We engage with them to set the overall policy frame for Canada-U.S. border co-operation. This relationship is important because DHS oversees the American operational agencies, primarily U.S. Customs and Border Protection, or CBP, which is responsible for border management. While they are not here today, my colleagues at Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada also play a role in interactions with our DHS counterparts on matters related to cross-border migration.
I recently met with my new counterpart from the Department of Homeland Security in Washington, D.C., and I can report that there is significant alignment on the work we are doing to secure the border and where we can do more.
Importantly, there is acknowledgement by both Canadian and American officials that Canada's $1.3-billion border plan, announced last December, is making a difference and showing results.
Both Canada and the U.S. have increased the number of resources assigned to the border and are making investments in new technology and equipment to improve surveillance and detection.
Southbound irregular migration has decreased by 99% since last summer, thanks to joint efforts at the border and upstream work by our IRCC colleagues to ensure travel document integrity.
It is also clear that the fight against fentanyl is a common cause that both countries need to work on together, not something that divides us. U.S. data consistently shows that less than 1% of fentanyl seized in the U.S. comes from Canada.
What this illustrates is that border management is a joint endeavour, and that while the U.S. may look to Canada to address issues related to migration and drugs, Canada is also looking to the U.S. to address challenges with illegal drugs and firearms coming north. This is why our day-to-day co-operation with them is so important and why having a strong working relationship at all levels remains a priority.
It is also why there are many examples of long-standing Canada-U.S. co-operation in border management. Pre-clearance operations are just one example exemplifying bilateral co-operation at the border, with eight of Canada's largest airports hosting U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers who pre-clear Canadians so that they can arrive in the U.S. as domestic travellers. This provides significant economic and security benefits to both countries.
Also, on a personal note, under this program, roughly 400 U.S. officers are posted to Canada. They live here with their families, who attend our schools and are part of our local community. This is just one example of the kind of integration we have with our American counterparts.
Finally, as you know, the Government of Canada has introduced Bill C-2, the strong borders act, to ensure that law enforcement has the legislative tools to keep our borders secure, combat transnational organized crime, and crack down on money laundering. Many of the measures proposed in the bill will also support shared Canada-U.S. objectives.
With that, I will now turn to my other colleagues to speak to the roles of their agencies.
My colleague Mr. McGuire and I look forward to taking your questions.
Thank you.