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MINUTES OF PROCEEDINGS
 
Meeting No. 63
 
Monday, November 26, 2012
 

The Standing Committee on Citizenship and Immigration met in a televised session at 3:30 p.m. this day, in Room C-110, 1 Wellington Street, the Chair, David Tilson, presiding.

 

Members of the Committee present: Rick Dykstra, Mylène Freeman, Sadia Groguhé, Roxanne James, Kevin Lamoureux, Chungsen Leung, Costas Menegakis, Ted Opitz, Jinny Jogindera Sims, Rathika Sitsabaiesan, David Tilson and John Weston.

 

In attendance: Library of Parliament: Sandra Elgersma, Analyst; Julie Béchard, Analyst. House of Commons: Christine Lafrance, Legislative Clerk.

 

Witnesses: Department of Citizenship and Immigration: Karen Clarke, Deputy Director, Migration Control and Horizontal Policy; Jillan Sadek, Director, Case Review. Department of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness: Emmanuelle Deault-Bonin, Manager, National Security Policy Directorate. Canada Border Services Agency: Carl Desmarais, Acting Director, Policy Division, Enforcement and Intelligence Programs Directorate.

 
Pursuant to the Order of Reference of Tuesday, October 16, 2012, the Committee resumed consideration of Bill C-43, An Act to amend the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act.
 

The Committee commenced its clause-by-clause study of the Bill.

 

Emmanuelle Deault-Bonin, Karen Clarke and Jillan Sadek answered questions.

 

Pursuant to Standing Order 75(1), consideration of Clause 1 was postponed.

The Chair called Clause 2.

 

Clause 2 carried.

 

Clause 3 carried on division.

 

Clause 4 carried.

 

On Clause 5,

Jinny Jogindera Sims moved, — That Bill C-43, in Clause 5, be amended by replacing line 14 on page 2 with the following:

“must answer truthfully all questions relevant to the application put to them”

 

After debate, the question was put on the amendment of Jinny Jogindera Sims and it was negatived on the following recorded division: YEAS: Mylène Freeman, Sadia Groguhé, Kevin Lamoureux, Jinny Jogindera Sims, Rathika Sitsabaiesan — 5; NAYS: Rick Dykstra, Roxanne James, Chungsen Leung, Costas Menegakis, Ted Opitz, John Weston — 6.

 

The Chair ruled the following amendment inadmissible as the Committee already dealt with an identical question:

That Bill C-43, in Clause 5, be amended by replacing line 14 on page 2 with the following:

“must answer truthfully all questions relevant to the application put to them”

 
Jinny Jogindera Sims moved, — That Bill C-43, in Clause 5, be amended by adding after line 15 on page 2 the following:

“(2.2) A foreign national who is requested to appear for an interview under subsection (2.1) has the right to appear with counsel.”

 

After debate, the question was put on the amendment of Jinny Jogindera Sims and it was negatived on the following recorded division: YEAS: Mylène Freeman, Sadia Groguhé, Kevin Lamoureux, Jinny Jogindera Sims, Rathika Sitsabaiesan — 5; NAYS: Rick Dykstra, Roxanne James, Chungsen Leung, Costas Menegakis, Ted Opitz, John Weston — 6.

 
Kevin Lamoureux moved, — That Bill C-43, in Clause 5, be amended by adding after line 15 on page 2 the following:

“(2.2) The following conditions apply in respect of any interview conducted in accordance with subsection (2.1):

(a) the foreign national has a right to counsel;

(b) any information procured and used to impair the liberty or security the foreign national, or any third party, is subject to a fair and impartial review process, including requirements for the retention of interview notes; and

(c) the interview is conducted in a fair and impartial manner that promotes accountability.”

 

After debate, the question was put on the amendment of Kevin Lamoureux and it was negatived on the following recorded division: YEAS: Mylène Freeman, Sadia Groguhé, Kevin Lamoureux, Jinny Jogindera Sims, Rathika Sitsabaiesan — 5; NAYS: Rick Dykstra, Roxanne James, Chungsen Leung, Costas Menegakis, Ted Opitz, John Weston — 6.

 

Clause 5 carried.

 

Clause 6 carried on division.

 

Clause 7 carried on division.

 

On Clause 8,

Jinny Jogindera Sims moved, — That Bill C-43, in Clause 8, be amended by replacing lines 37 and 38 on page 2 with the following:

“resident if the Minister has reasonable grounds to believe that the foreign national

(a) has promoted or glorified terrorist violence;

(b) has promoted or glorified a listed entity under the Regulations Establishing a List of Entities pursuant to the Criminal Code, the Regulations Implementing the United Nations Resolutions on the Suppression of Terrorism or the United Nations Al-Qaida and Taliban Regulations;

(c) has counselled, encouraged or incited others to commit terrorist activity or terrorist violence;

(d) has incited hatred that is likely to lead to violence against a specific group;

(e) has promoted, counselled, encouraged or incited serious criminal activity;

(f) is a foreign national of a country against which Canada has imposed sanctions under the United Nations Act or the Special Economic Measures Act, where that foreign national is

(i) a former or current senior official of the government of that country, or of any entity owned or controlled by, or acting on behalf of, the government, or

(ii) an associate or a relative of an official or person described in subparagraph (i); or

(g) is a foreign national who is a politically exposed foreign person listed in regulations made under the Freezing Assets of Corrupt Foreign Officials Act.”

 

After debate, the question was put on the amendment of Jinny Jogindera Sims and it was negatived on the following recorded division: YEAS: Mylène Freeman, Sadia Groguhé, Jinny Jogindera Sims, Rathika Sitsabaiesan — 4; NAYS: Rick Dykstra, Roxanne James, Kevin Lamoureux, Chungsen Leung, Costas Menegakis, Ted Opitz, John Weston — 7.

 
Jinny Jogindera Sims moved, — That Bill C-43, in Clause 8, be amended by adding after line 2 on page 3 the following:

“(4) The Minister shall include in the annual report referred to in section 94 the following information about the declarations made under subsection (1):

(a) the total number of declarations made during the year in question;

(b) the period of time for which the declarations were made under subsection (2);

(c) the number of declarations that were revoked or shortened under subsection (3); and

(d) the reasons for the declarations made by the Minister.”

 

After debate, the question was put on the amendment of Jinny Jogindera Sims and it was negatived on the following recorded division: YEAS: Mylène Freeman, Sadia Groguhé, Kevin Lamoureux, Jinny Jogindera Sims, Rathika Sitsabaiesan — 5; NAYS: Rick Dykstra, Roxanne James, Chungsen Leung, Costas Menegakis, Ted Opitz, John Weston — 6.

 
Kevin Lamoureux moved, — That Bill C-43, in Clause 8, be amended by adding after line 2 on page 3 the following:

“(4) The Minister must, within 30 days of making a declaration under subsection (1) that a foreign national may not become a temporary resident, table in each House of Parliament a report on the reasons for the declaration.”

 

By unanimous consent, the amendment was allowed to stand.

 

By unanimous consent, the amendment and Clause 8 were allowed to stand.

 

On Clause 9,

Jinny Jogindera Sims moved, — That Bill C-43, in Clause 9, be amended by replacing lines 7 to 16 on page 3 with the following:

“or who does not meet the requirements of this Act, and may, on request of a foreign national outside Canada, examine the circumstances concerning the foreign national and may grant the foreign national permanent resident status or an exemption from any applicable criteria or obligations of this Act if the Minister has reasonable grounds to believe that it”

 

After debate, the question was put on the amendment of Jinny Jogindera Sims and it was negatived on the following recorded division: YEAS: Mylène Freeman, Sadia Groguhé, Kevin Lamoureux, Jinny Jogindera Sims, Rathika Sitsabaiesan — 5; NAYS: Rick Dykstra, Roxanne James, Chungsen Leung, Costas Menegakis, Ted Opitz, John Weston — 6.

 

Clause 9 carried on the following recorded division: YEAS: Rick Dykstra, Roxanne James, Chungsen Leung, Costas Menegakis, Ted Opitz, John Weston — 6; NAYS: Mylène Freeman, Sadia Groguhé, Kevin Lamoureux, Jinny Jogindera Sims, Rathika Sitsabaiesan — 5.

 

On Clause 10,

Jinny Jogindera Sims moved, — That Bill C-43, in Clause 10, be amended by replacing lines 26 to 31 on page 3 with the following:

“or who does not meet the requirements of this Act and may grant the foreign national permanent resident status or an exemption from any applicable criteria or obligations of this Act if the Minister has reasonable grounds to believe that it is justified”

 

After debate, the question was put on the amendment of Jinny Jogindera Sims and it was negatived on the following recorded division: YEAS: Mylène Freeman, Sadia Groguhé, Kevin Lamoureux, Jinny Jogindera Sims, Rathika Sitsabaiesan — 5; NAYS: Rick Dykstra, Roxanne James, Chungsen Leung, Costas Menegakis, Ted Opitz, John Weston — 6.

 

Clause 10 carried on the following recorded division: YEAS: Rick Dykstra, Roxanne James, Chungsen Leung, Costas Menegakis, Ted Opitz, John Weston — 6; NAYS: Mylène Freeman, Sadia Groguhé, Kevin Lamoureux, Jinny Jogindera Sims, Rathika Sitsabaiesan — 5.

 

Clause 11 carried on division.

 

Clause 12 carried on division.

 

On Clause 13,

Rick Dykstra moved, — That Bill C-43, in Clause 13, be amended by adding after line 24 on page 4 the following:

“(2.1) Paragraph 34(1)(f) of the Act is replaced by the following:

(f) being a member of an organization that there are reasonable grounds to believe engages, has engaged or will engage in acts referred to in paragraph (a), (b), (b.1) or (c).”

 

The question was put on the amendment of Rick Dykstra and it was agreed to on division.

 

Clause 13 carried.

 

Clause 14 carried on division.

 

Clause 15 carried on division.

 

On Clause 16,

Jinny Jogindera Sims moved, — That Bill C-43, in Clause 16, be amended by replacing line 39 on page 4 with the following:

“misrepresentation, unless there are reasonable grounds to believe that the misrepresentation was unintentional, for a period of five years”

 

After debate, the question was put on the amendment of Jinny Jogindera Sims and it was negatived on the following recorded division: YEAS: Mylène Freeman, Sadia Groguhé, Kevin Lamoureux, Jinny Jogindera Sims, Rathika Sitsabaiesan — 5; NAYS: Rick Dykstra, Roxanne James, Chungsen Leung, Costas Menegakis, Ted Opitz, John Weston — 6.

 
Kevin Lamoureux moved, — That Bill C-43, in Clause 16, be amended by replacing line 39 on page 4 with the following:

“unintentional misrepresentation for a period of two years, or for a period of five years if the misrepresentation is found to be clearly fraudulent,”

 

After debate, the question was put on the amendment of Kevin Lamoureux and it was negatived on the following recorded division: YEAS: Kevin Lamoureux — 1; NAYS: Rick Dykstra, Mylène Freeman, Sadia Groguhé, Roxanne James, Chungsen Leung, Costas Menegakis, Ted Opitz, Jinny Jogindera Sims, Rathika Sitsabaiesan, John Weston — 10.

 

Clause 16 carried on division.

 

Clause 17 carried on division.

 

At 5:30 p.m., the Committee adjourned to the call of the Chair.

 



Julie Lalande Prud'homme
Clerk of the Committee

 
 
2013-01-31 3:39 p.m.