Mr. Speaker, I will be speaking to different parts of the motion, but I am first going to make some general comments.
The member said that he does not know much about criminal justice models around the world. I suggest that the member is correct. I suggest that the Reform Party knows little about criminal justice models around the world and if Reform members do, we would like to have them stand in the House and tell us which system they would like to see us model our system on. Would it be Europe? Would it be the United States? Would it be South Africa? Would it be Texas? Which?
One of the problems when we enter into this type of debate is that members of the official opposition ends up trafficking in a lot of fiction. By saying that I mean they would misrepresent a situation of crime and the number of victims in this country as to how we compare to other countries.
The Reform Party would have us believe that our Young Offenders Act is the most lenient act around. For the record, our Young Offenders Act incarcerates 15 times as many young people as similar acts in New Zealand and Australia, 10 times as many young people as in western Europe and even twice as many young people as in the United States. Our Young Offenders Act is more punitive to young people than an adult charged with the same kind of crime. Young offenders spend more time in jail for a crime than adults do in the adult system.
When I say that the official opposition is trafficking in fiction, that is exactly what I mean.
It is nice for the Reform Party to go around and say there is a fear of crime in this country and that people should not be afraid. Every one of us in the House would agree that one victim is one victim too many, that one crime is one crime too many.
The reality is that the crime rate has been dropping over the years. It has been progressively going down. Compared to the United States, our crime rate is much lower. Canadians feel much safer in this country than they do in the United States. Every example calling for tougher sentencing and dealing more toughly with law breakers always points to the American model.
One of the biggest fears people have of crime involves the use of guns. That is why the government put in place gun registration, which I must say is being ignored and was not supported by the Reform Party.
I want to touch on immigration. Immigration has certainly been a greatly exploited topic by the folks on the other side.
The safety and security of Canadians are a concern of the government. Through the immigration program numerous measures have been undertaken to ensure that criminals do not enter and that those who have entered have no right to remain and are removed.
This undesirable group, however, represents a small fraction of the total number of visitors and immigrants that come to Canada. Citizenship and Immigration Canada strives to ensure public safety while facilitating the entry of legitimate travellers. It is difficult to balance.
Last year alone 110 million people crossed our borders to enter Canada. Many of them were Canadian citizens returning home, as well as visitors, immigrants, foreign students and refugees. Security screening is used for all those who are entering Canada. Toward the goal of public safety there are three screens in place to guard against illegal entry and to identify those who should not be here.
Before I continue, I will be splitting my time with the member for Erie—Lincoln and I look forward to his contribution.
At the international level a screening occurs. Those wishing to come to Canada as visitors or immigrants are scrutinized when they apply for a visa. Immigration control officers working in Canadian embassies and missions abroad ensure that security and health checks are done. It is at the international level that we have formed partnerships with foreign governments to help confirm the identities of foreign criminals and to prevent them from coming to Canada. The problem of illegal migration is a global one with crime rings operating beyond national borders. It is therefore necessary to work toward solutions at the international level.
A second screen is conducted at the Canadian border where Citizenship and Immigration Canada officials and those of Revenue Canada deal with incoming travellers. The use of computer databases has helped greatly in establishing identification, ensuring that those seeking to enter Canada have not been previously arrested or removed. The work at these border crossings and airports is a key element in our defence against illegal entry.
The third type of screening goes on within Canada with the co-operative work of Citizenship and Immigration Canada, the RCMP, and all Canadian police forces. This inland screening is an ongoing process that makes use of shared databases and immigration warrants. Often something as routine as a traffic stop allows an officer to determine immigrant status and possibly the existence of warrants.
It is this information sharing with police forces across the country that has allowed Citizenship and Immigration Canada to identify and remove criminals and those without status in Canada. I remind members opposite that the removal of foreign criminals and failed refugee claimants has increased steadily over the last four years.
In 1998, 8,012 people were removed from Canada. This represents an increase of 67% from 1995 when citizenship and immigration effected 4,798 removals.
While there is much to commend in the current Immigration Act there are avenues for improvement. Changes are now being considered. On January 6 this year the minister proposed new directions for immigration legislation and policy. Under these proposals the system would be improved by clearly defining who is admissible to Canada, by creating new inadmissible classes, and by enhancing the capacity of government to remove people who have no right to establish themselves in Canada. Also among the proposals is the removal of a level of appeal for serious criminals as well as those people who obtain permanent resident status through misrepresentation.
As we advance with these proposed changes I look forward to the contributions of members opposite so that we might recognize the efficiencies and improve the Immigration Act.
There is no question that we have problems in enforcement in terms of having people who come to the country that commit offences.
When we look at our immigration policies over the years we have to recognize that we have a country with a population of 30 million. Something like six million people were not born here. We have a generous acceptance of refugees which is both humane and generous. Beyond that, the number of people who involve themselves in criminal activity compared to the whole is very small.
People look at Canada overall as being a nation of immigrants. I can look around the House and say there are 47 members who were born outside Canada. A number of people were refugees and are represented pretty well in all parties.
Canada is a nation that was built on immigration. If we look at the status we occupy in the world because of this reality, we have to say that our policies overall, which will get some improvement, have served the country very well.