Roxanne James

[Faster Removal of Foreign Criminals Act, January 30th, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, when I think of this bill, and being a member of the Standing Committee on Citizenship and Immigration, I think of the terrible incident that happened in Toronto with Constable Todd Baylis, not only because I live in Toronto, but my father also served that great city as a Toronto police officer.

Members know the fact that the gentleman who murdered and shot—

[Citizenship and Immigration, January 30th, 2013]

I know, I can't believe it either.

Could the parliamentary secretary update the House on our government's commitment to getting Bill C-43 passed quickly?

[Citizenship and Immigration, January 30th, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, our Conservative government introduced the faster removal of foreign criminals act to ensure dangerous foreign criminals no longer have access to endless avenues to appeal their deportation. Shamefully, the NDP is using amendments to try to gut this important bill. During report stage yesterday, the NDP and Liberals stated repeatedly they do not think criminals who are convicted of six months or more should be considered serious or dangerous.

[Citizenship Act, January 29th, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, I am grateful for the opportunity to add my comments to Bill C-425, an act to amend the Citizenship Act (honouring the Canadian armed forces). I would like to extend my congratulations to my hon. colleague, the member of Parliament for Calgary Northeast, who introduced this private member's bill. By doing so, the hon. member has demonstrated an admirable commitment to recognizing the exemplary service of Canada's men and women in uniform, the very worthy individuals who stand on the front lines and put their lives at risk to defend our safety and liberty.

This private member's bill proposes to fast-track citizenship for members of the Canadian armed forces who are permanent residents by reducing the residence requirements for citizenship by one year for those members. It also proposes to take citizenship away from or deny citizenship to those who engage in acts of war against the Canadian armed forces.

Canadian citizenship is extremely valuable and I commend the member for recognizing this through his private member's bill. Canadians, whether established or new, must take our responsibilities as citizens very seriously. From generation to generation, thousands upon thousands of Canadian soldiers have given their lives for this country. Countless more risk their lives and some are doing so right now.

While enrolment in the Canadian armed forces is usually limited to Canadian citizens, permanent residents who have not yet acquired citizenship are sometimes employed in exceptional circumstances. These are people who dedicate their lives to protecting Canada yet they do not possess the fundamental membership in Canadian society. Their lack of citizenship often correlates with challenges in acquiring security clearances and arranging passports. This creates problems in deploying these individuals abroad.

Introducing a fast track to citizenship for permanent residents who serve in our country's armed forces, as the bill proposes, would help mitigate these types of problems. The proposals in the bill to honour the Canadian Forces are in line with other measurements the government has taken in the past few years. This includes recognizing the distinctive merit and exceptional service displayed by recipients of the Order of Military Merit.

The Order of Military Merit established in 1972 recognizes distinctive merit and exceptional service displayed by the men and women of the Canadian armed forces. Many of these men and women have demonstrated dedication and devotion beyond the call of duty and the order honours them for their commitment to our country.

Last fall, the Government of Canada announced that members of the Order of Military Merit at the colonel level and above are now eligible to preside at citizenship ceremonies. The Order of Military Merit honours military service to Canada. It is therefore fitting that recipients of this award can preside at citizenship ceremonies, an occasion at which we reflect on the value of Canadian citizenship and the responsibility we carry as Canadians.

The Government of Canada launched the citizenship action plan three years ago in order to strengthen and preserve the value of Canadian citizenship. First we developed a new citizenship guide “Discover Canada”, which explores our history, shared values, symbols and institutions in a more in-depth way than its predecessor. In addition, we improved the knowledge requirement for Canadian citizenship with a new test. We did so to ensure that new citizens can appreciate the foundation upon which our shared values of freedom, democracy, human rights and the rule of law were built.

We have also taken action to address the problem of residence fraud in our citizenship program. As the Minister of Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism announced in September, Citizenship and Immigration Canada is now investigating more than 11,000 individuals from more than 100 countries for attempting to cheat Canadians and Canada. In order to help detect fraud we have also introduced a citizenship fraud tip line. We are also taking action to crack down on crooked consultants who often help people maintain a Canadian address to appear as though they are living in Canada, even though in some cases they never have.

Canadians should be proud that so many people around the world want to become Canadian citizens. It is a testament to what a great country we live in. We can often take our citizenship for granted though. It is easy to forget how many people do not enjoy the liberty, security and freedom that we as Canadians do.

Our government believes that citizenship is precious, that it is a privilege and we have sent a clear message to those who would lie and cheat to obtain it that Canadian citizenship is not for sale. Bill C-425 aims to protect the value of citizenship by giving citizenship sooner to members of the Canadian Forces and by taking it away from those who undermine our country by taking up arms against Canada. In principle, it makes sense that those who commit violent acts against Canada and our armed forces, who do not believe in Canadian values or the value of Canadian citizenship should no longer hold citizenship in our great country. However, this proposal requires further study.

The bill contains certainly laudable proposals. That is why I personally support the bill moving forward to committee for further review and study, and I hope all members in the House will also do the same.

[Faster Removal of Foreign Criminals Act, January 29th, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank my hon. colleague for her wonderful speech.

I have been sitting in the House today and I keep hearing excuse after excuse from the opposition as to why someone should not be deported after committing a serious crime. I sit on the immigration committee, and I heard the same things again and again in the committee. The Liberal member for Winnipeg North even used this as an excuse: a lot of good people make some mistakes. Forgetting to put out the trash is a mistake. Committing a serious crime in Canada is not.

I just wonder whether the member for Miramichi would comment on why she thinks the NDP and the Liberals would rather support the criminals in this country than the law-abiding citizens and those who fall victim to crime?

[Faster Removal of Foreign Criminals Act, January 29th, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, some of the discussion is about newcomers to Canada and the fact that the opposition members seem to believe we are targeting a specific group of people. In fact, newcomers to Canada fall victim to those people who commit criminal acts in Canada and are not Canadian citizens themselves.

Could the parliamentary secretary speak to why the legislation we have put forth from the Conservative side appeals to so many Canadians and newcomers to Canada?

[Faster Removal of Foreign Criminals Act, January 29th, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, I apologize to the member opposite if I missed the Green Party in my speech. Unfortunately, as the member knows, the Green Party does not have official status in this House, having only one seat, and is not actually a member of the immigration committee.

Having said that, I would like to point out that this particular legislation actually goes to three different directions. It makes it easier for the government to remove dangerous foreign criminals. It makes it harder for those who pose a risk to Canada to enter Canada. Importantly, a point which is left out of a lot of the questions asked by the opposition, including the party of the one person in the corner, is it actually removes the barriers for genuine visitors who want to come to Canada and expedites that process. That is important also to note.

[Faster Removal of Foreign Criminals Act, January 29th, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, I am a bit concerned that the member suggests we should use our energy in other areas. The responsibility of any government is the safety and security of its citizens. I personally believe as a Conservative member of Parliament that any legislation we put forward that would do just that is not a waste of time.

With respect to the member's comments regarding the six-month period, I remind the House that a six-month sentence is not going to be for some minor misdemeanour. It is for a serious crime. We had witness after witness testify to that effect. I will leave it on the table that six months is justifiable for serious crimes and that this government will continue to focus on the safety and security of our citizens.

[Faster Removal of Foreign Criminals Act, January 29th, 2013]

Yes, it is disgusting.

The B.C. Supreme Court justice who sentenced this criminal described the murder as horrendous.

These are the criminals the New Democrats and the Liberals want to keep in Canada. These are the very real consequences of providing endless appeals to dangerous foreign criminals. Mr. Wagad's family knows these consequences all too well and will not forget them for the rest of their lives.

We know that the list of real examples is a long one. There are countless unfortunate examples. It is very difficult for me to understand how the New Democrats and Liberals can oppose this bill, but what is worse is that they are using procedural games through irresponsible amendments to try to delay and prevent its passage. The criteria to maintain permanent residency are very simple. People have to live in Canada; they have to obey the law. The vast majority of permanent residents have no trouble doing this. In fact, the vast majority of citizens have no problem meeting these criteria either. However, if people do break the law, there are consequences, even if the New Democrats and Liberals would prefer there not to be.

Our Conservative government is putting a stop to foreign criminals relying on endless appeals in order to delay their removal from Canada, during which time they continue to terrorize innocent Canadians. Canadians are generous and welcoming people, but they have no tolerance for criminals and fraudsters who abuse their generosity. The measures included in the faster removal of foreign criminals act are tough but they are fair. They are necessary, and quite frankly, long overdue. We want an immigration system that is open to genuine visitors while at the same time prevents the entry of foreign criminals and denies them the ability to endlessly abuse that generosity.

I urge the New Democrats and the Liberals to stop trying to prevent passage of this bill, to help us ensure its speedy passage and work with our government to help protect the safety and security of Canadian families.

[Faster Removal of Foreign Criminals Act, January 29th, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, it is with great pleasure that I rise to speak in strong support of C-43, the faster removal of foreign criminals act, at report stage and to oppose the irresponsible amendments introduced by the opposition.

Canadians have a long tradition of being welcoming and generous. In fact, our Conservative government has maintained the highest sustained levels of immigration in Canadian history. We have increased the number of refugees we are resettling into Canada by 20%. In order to maintain that tradition, Canadians need to have confidence in our immigration system.

For too long, Canadians have seen countless stories of people who view Canada as a doormat, a light touch, whose immigration system is an easy target for fraudsters and criminals. Understandably, Canadians have had enough. They have made it clear that they want us to restore the integrity of the immigration system. I am pleased to say that our Conservative government is doing just that.

This long overdue bill would make it easier for the government to deport dangerous foreign criminals from our country, make it harder for those who may pose a risk to Canada to enter into the country in the first place, while at the same time remove barriers for genuine visitors who want to come to Canada.

Unfortunately, the opposition has introduced several amendments to try to gut this bill. The opposition members are using these amendments as a partisan tactic to try to delay and prevent passage of this very important piece of legislation. They are playing procedural games, but these games have real consequences to Canada and to Canadians. I will explain the consequences of the games the opposition members are playing by using these amendments to delay passage of the bill.

The bill would ensure the speedy deportation of dangerous foreign criminals. It would ensure that dangerous foreign criminals are taken off of the streets in Canada more quickly and removed from our country. This means that they would no longer be able to commit more crimes in Canada and would no longer be able to victimize more innocent Canadians.

It is shocking to me that there would be anyone who would oppose this legislation, but shamefully, the NDP and Liberals oppose it. The opposition's amendments would delete the entire bill. The NDP and Liberals do not seem to have any problem with these dangerous foreign criminals staying on our streets and living in our communities. I certainly have a problem with that. It shows just how out of touch they are with Canadians in all parts of the country and in all ridings, including mine of Scarborough Centre, who widely support our bill.

Time and time again the NDP and the Liberals put the interests of criminals ahead of the rights of victims and hard-working, law-abiding Canadians. Our Conservative government is the only party in the House that truly cares about victims, that cares about innocent law-abiding Canadians. We are the only party that is cracking down on crime. We introduced the fast removal of foreign criminals act because we know that Canadian families care about safety and security.

Unfortunately, the NDP and Liberals do not share the same concern and are proving that yet again by shamefully voting against the bill and trying to prevent it from becoming law. The NDP and Liberals are not just ignoring Canadians who overwhelmingly support the bill; what is worse, they are ignoring the support the bill has received from stakeholders and experts. They are ignoring the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police, which stated that it:

--supports the efforts of the Faster Removal of Foreign Criminals Act to provide for a more expeditious removal from Canada of foreigners who are convicted of committing serious crimes against Canadians. As well, we support measures to prevent those with a history of committing criminal offences, or who pose a risk to our society, from entering Canada. The Act will help to make Canadians and those who legitimately enter Canada safer.

The opposition is also ignoring the Canadian Police Association, which stated that it:

--welcomes the introduction of the Faster Removal of Foreign Criminals Act, particularly with respect to the enhanced prohibitions against those who have committed serious crimes abroad from coming to Canada.

While the overwhelming majority of those who come to Canada make a tremendous contribution to our shared communities, there does remain a [number] who flout Canadian law and have taken advantage of drawn-out proceedings to remain in the country at a risk to public safety. This legislation will help us by streamlining the procedures necessary to remove individuals who remain at-risk to re-offend.

Ensuring that public safety is one of the considerations with respect to admissibility to Canada is a clear step in the right direction.

The New Democrats and Liberals like to use hypothetical examples and situations during debate, but the fact is that the consequences of this bill not becoming law would be very real. They would be the most real to the unfortunate victims of these dangerous foreign criminals.

Let us take the very real example of Babak Najafi-Chaghabouri. As per recent media reports, this criminal was charged with several crimes, including aggravated assault. He received a prison sentence of 18 months which under the current system allowed him to appeal his deportation to the immigration appeal division which granted him a stay of his removal and allowed him to remain in Canada. Subsequently and sadly, he murdered Ronak Wagad. In fact, he used a hatchet to chop the back of Mr. Wagad's head five times.