Mr. Speaker, I must admit I find the persistence of the member for Bourassa in pursuing this question a little puzzling. He knows full well that this matter is currently before the courts and that it would be inappropriate for the minister to comment at this time.
The hon. member of the opposition has suggested that the minister should actively intervene and remove this individual from the Immigration and Refugee Board. As he well knows, the IRB is a quasi-judicial tribunal which operates at arm's length from the Department of Citizenship and Immigration. It is important to maintain this arm's length relationship if we want to preserve both the impartiality and the perception of impartiality of IRB decisions.
The Minister of Citizenship and Immigration does not casually meddle in IRB affairs, particularly affairs concerning human resources. This is an area over which the board's chairperson,Ms. Mawani, has complete authority.
I would like to remind the hon. member that one of the fundamental principles of Canadian law is that someone is innocent until proven guilty.
At this point, this is all the minister can and is prepared to do in this case.