Mr. Speaker, I listened to the minister with great interest as he rhymed off figures and facts of what the government has done and what the government has not done.
I am wondering if he would answer one simple question. What has happened in Sri Lanka is a tragedy that is shared by many people, but there is a tragedy also to a particular element of our community in Canada. Canadians of Tamil descent are sponsoring their spouses from that part of the world. In any other post it would take anywhere between six to eight months. In Sri Lanka it is taking up to three years for a spousal sponsorship. They are asked to do more interviews. They are interviewed by CSIS. There are not enough personnel on the ground to ensure these interviews are done quickly.
Could the minister, in this House today, clarify for me, my constituents and the House why the Tamil population in Sri Lanka is being singled out and why it takes up to 300 times as much time to process an immigration file for a spouse of up to three years? I am wondering if the minister could be away from his wife for three years.