Sweeping immigration changes target 'foreign criminals'

Humanitarian and compassionate grounds removed as factors for admissability to Canada

By Laura Payton, CBC News
Posted: Jun 20, 2012 2:37 PM ET
Last Updated: Jun 20, 2012 3:42 PM ET

Changes proposed for the immigration system would mean automatic deportation for any non-Canadian sentenced to more than six months in jail.

Citizenship and Immigration Minister Jason Kenney tabled legislation in the House Wednesday that would make it easier for the government to deport refugees, permanent residents and visitors for "serious criminality," a crime whose punishment requires jail time.

The proposed law would take away humanitarian and compassionate grounds as factors in appealing a decision that someone is inadmissable to Canada. The changes would mean the public safety minister would be able to consider only national security and public safety in deciding whether someone can become Canadian.

In their election campaign platform last year, the Conservatives promised to streamline deportations of "foreign criminals" from Canada.

"It often takes years to deport even dangerous foreign criminals from Canada. In some cases, foreign criminals and terrorists here have evaded removal from Canada for over a decade as they exploit endless appeals and loopholes. Canadians expect that foreign criminals will get due process before being removed, but not an endless abuse of our generosity," campaign literature said.

Immigration lawyer Lorne Waldman criticized the decision to remove the right of appeal for people sentenced to more than six months in prison, a change from current legislation that removes appeals only for convictions carrying two years or more.

"[The change] means that there will be no review of all of the circumstances and how the deportation order might affect children or spouses, family, etc.," Waldman said in an email to CBC News. "It means deportation regardless of how long the person is in Canada."

"The whole point of the appeal and review [process] was to ensure that people who have committed minor offences and who have lived all their life here or who have children who will be affected, that these matters get considered so that there is a balancing done before the person is deported."

The Conservatives promised in their 2011 platform to make it a top priority to follow through on existing and new deportation orders against people with criminal records or connections to terrorist organizations or organized crime.

The party also promised to cut the number of appeals available to those ordered deported for "serious criminality" or connections to terrorism or gangs, and change current laws to let courts order deportation as soon as a convicted person reaches parole or finishes their sentence, and accept deportation as a condition of parole eligibility.

And it promised to change the law that provides for international prisoner transfers to "remove the requirement for a foreign offender's consent for prisoner transfer, so that in some cases they can complete their sentence abroad."

Interim Liberal Leader Bob Rae said Wednesday the government is trying to "change the channel" by introducing legislation a day before the House is expected to adjourn for the summer.

"The [Prime Minister's Office] is troubled," Rae told reporters on Parliament Hill.

"Every time they get into trouble with their agenda, they say let's go back to law and order.… We'll be studying it carefully but I think we have to understand the political game that's being played here. You don't bring in legislation at the very end of June with a view that this is something that you're going to get done. It's a view that you want to get some publicity and you want to get a headline."

The legislation is the latest in a series of changes to Canada's immigration and refugee system, including:
Bill C-31, which targets human smuggling and gives the immigration minister sole authority to decide which groups of refugee claimants are "mass arrivals." The bill has passed the House of Commons and is being considered by the Senate.
Amendments to the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act contained in the omnibus budget bill, which passed the House this week, that will wipe out a backlog of 280,000 applications under the Federal Skilled Worker Program. Applications made before 2008 would be deleted and the application fee refunded.
A new policy that comes into effect June 30 will cut back on the services offered to refugees under the Interim Federal Health Program, which gives temporary health-care coverage to approximately 128,000 refugees.
A decision by Kenney last year to freeze applications from foreign parents and grandparents to join their children in Canada, while raising the annual number of applicants allowed in to the country, in a bid to clear a backlog of 180,000 applications. He also introduced a new "super-visa" that allows family members to visit Canada for up to 10 years provided they have a minimum annual income and arrange their own health insurance.

Sweeping immigration changes target 'foreign criminals' - Politics - CBC News