CIMM – Committee & Appearance Overview – February 8, 2023

Committee Mandate

The Standing Committee on Citizenship and Immigration (CIMM) studies matters related to immigration, citizenship and federal multiculturalism policy.

The committee has oversight of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada and the Immigration and Refugee Board.

*Note: the original report which requested the Government Response in question at CIMM originated in the Special Committee on Afghanistan (AFGH).

The committee studied matters related to the fall of Afghanistan, with the primary objective of assessing the humanitarian assistance to be put in place by Canada to assist the Afghan people.

Recent Committee Business

AFGH Report & Government Response:

• Report: ”Honouring Canada’s Legacy in Afghanistan: Responding to the Humanitarian Crisis and Helping People Reach Safety”
• Government Response

CIMM Studies

A list of studies the committee has moved to undertake in the 44th Parliament can be found on the Parliament of Canada website.

CIMM Reports

A list of reports the committee has presented in the 44th parliament can be found on the Parliament of Canada website.

Appearance Background

The Special Committee on Afghanistan (AFGH) was established in the House of Commons from December 2021 to June 2022. The committee met with several witnesses to gather testimony on the situation in Afghanistan, ultimately producing their final report, titled Honouring Canada’s Legacy in Afghanistan: Responding to the Humanitarian Crisis and Helping People Reach Safety. The report proposes 37 recommendations to the government. A Government Response was tabled on October 6 by Global Affairs Canada, addressing the recommendations made in the report. 

The Standing Committee on Citizenship and Immigration (CIMM) adopted the following motion on October 28, 2022, to meet with the four government departments implicated in the report recommendations to improve the facilitation of Afghans coming to Canada.  

That the committee study the government’s response to the final report of the Special Committee on Afghanistan entitled Honouring Canada’s Legacy In Afghanistan: Responding To The Humanitarian Crisis And Helping People Reach Safety, following the tabling of the report; that the committee invite the Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, Minister of National Defence, Minister of Foreign Affairs and the Minister of Justice and Attorney General, and their officials, with two hours allocated for each department, to provide an update on which of the 37 recommendations related to their portfolio, they have acted on and/or its progress and which they will not implement with an explanation; and that the committee report its findings to the House.

It is anticipated that the Minister will be invited to deliver a 5-minute opening statement, followed by rounds of questioning from committee members.

It is recommended that the following officials accompany the Minister for the first hour, and remain for the second hour to continue addressing committee questions:

• Christiane Fox, Deputy Minister
• Jennifer MacIntyre, Assistant Deputy Minister, Afghanistan
• Catherine Scott, Assistant Deputy Minister, Settlement and Integration
• Pemi Gill, Director General, International Network

The Parliamentary Affairs Unit is collaborating with counterparts at Global Affairs Canada, the Department of National Defence, and the Department of Justice to ensure a unified government approach to the appearance. It is expected that Ministers and deputies from each department will attend on various days. We will provide an update when we have confirmation.

Issue notes and key messages will be developed by the Department to support the Minister and officials in addressing concerns from all parties. A draft briefing binder is expected to be delivered for your approval on January 20 in advance of the DM Huddle. Once approved by you, the Minister’s binder will be provided on January 26 (TBC), prior to a Ministerial pre-brief, which will be scheduled once confirmation of his availably is obtained.

Environmental Scan

Members of Parliament have been continuing to express concern for the people of Afghanistan, imploring that the government do more to help. IRCC has been receiving questions on the topic of Afghanistan through various channels including Question Period, requests for Access to Information and Privacy, written correspondence and Order Paper Questions (P-00797, SDA-0171).

Key topics and possible lines of questioning surrounding Afghanistan include:

• Contentious or disagreeing responses to the AFGH report
• Seeking Progress Updates
• Backlogs and Processing Delays
• Emergency Mechanism for IRCC to address crises
• Minority and Persecuted Groups

Committee Membership

Salma Zahid (Scarborough Centre, ON)
Chair of CIMM

Brad Redekopp (Saskatoon West, SK)
Vice-Chair of CIMM;
Associate Shadow Minister for Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship

Alexis Brunelle-Duceppe (Lac-Saint-Jean, QC)
Second Vice-Chair of CIMM; Vice-Chair of SDIR; Critic for Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship and Human Rights

Shafqat Ali (Brampton Centre, ON)

Sukh Dhaliwal (Surrey-Newton, BC)
Chair of SAFG; Previously a CIMM member

Fayçal El-Khoury (Laval—Les Îles, QC)
Member of the panel of chairs for the legislative committees

Arielle Kayabaga (London West, ON)
Member of LANG

Tom Kmiec (Calgary Shepard, AB)
Shadow Minister for Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship; Member of CACN

Jenny Kwan (Vancouver East, BC)
Cancus Chair; Long-standing Critic for Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship; Critic for Housing

Marie-France Lalonde (Orléans, ON)
Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship

Larry Macguire (Brandon-Souris, MB)

Hon. Michelle Rempel Garner (Calgary Nose Hill, AB)
Former Shadow Minister of IRCC
Former member of CIMM

Please note the Departmental Correspondence from Members of Parliament in relation to this appearance

Conservative Party of Canada

Related Party Issues

The Conservative Party of Canada (CPC) has criticized the government for what it perceives as inaction in response to the Afghanistan crisis, and for failing to act quickly. Additionally, the party believes that the government has struggled to respond to the crisis in Afghanistan without impacting other situations.

Recent Party Activity

• Dec 12 – Debates: Stated the previous Minister of Immigration failed to protect the Afghan interpreters (Motz).
• Dec 8 – Debates: Presented the Hazaras Petition, stating the government needs to formally recognize the ethnic cleansing perpetrated against the Hazaras as a genocide (Genuis).
• Nov 29 – CIMM: Questioned the Deputy Minister on their knowledge of the hypothesized fall of Afghanistan, compared to the Department’s first response to the crisis (Rempel).
• Nov 2 – Debates: Contended that the government has failed to act quickly enough and prematurely ended special immigration measures (Kusie).
• Sept 27 – CIMM: Questioned stakeholders about their thoughts when they hear the government say that they can respond to crises in Afghanistan and Ukraine without them impacting other situations (Genuis).
• Sept 21 –Twitter: Retweeted a Globe and Mail article that a senator provided fake travel documents to Afghans fleeing the Taliban.
• Aug 30 – Twitter: Stated it had been a year since the government left Afghanistan, and that some have been stranded (Redekopp).
• July 15 – Letter to Minister: Resettlement of refugees from Afghanistan (Rempel Garner).
• June 21 – Debates: Expressed concern for government services suffering, including issues with Afghanistan (Brassard).
• June 6 – Letter to Minister: Requested government to bring persecuted Afghani refugees to Canada (Hallan).

CIMM Members

Tom Kmiec
(Calgary Shepard, AB)
Shadow Minister for Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship

Topics of Interest

• Fiscal matters and the economy
• Equalization
• Foreign affairs and international development
• Rare diseases

Brad Redekopp
(Saskatoon West, SK)
Vice-Chair of CIMM;
Associate Shadow Minister for Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship

Larry Macguire
(Brandon-Souris, MB)

Hon. Michelle Rempel Garner
(Calgary Nose Hill, AB),

Other Active Members

Pierre Paul-Hus
(Charlesbourg—Haute-Saint-Charles, QC)
Former Shadow Cabinet Minister for Public Services and Procurement

New Democratic Party

Top Party Issues

The New Democratic Party (NDP) has criticised the government for inaction and called for more to be done in response to the humanitarian crisis, particularly for those at most risk who are inside their source country. They also seek to relax requirements for Afghan refugees to come to Canada.

Recent Party Activity

• Dec 8 – Debates: Presented the Hazaras Petition, and stated the government needs to formally recognize the ethnic cleansing perpetrated against the Hazaras as a genocide (McPherson).
• Oct 31 – Debates: Asked the Minister for a bigger humanitarian action and response for Afghanistan (McPherson).
• Oct 24 – Debates: Stated that the country does not have the capacity to welcome a large number of Afghans in addition to Ukrainians (McPherson).
• Oct 10 – Twitter: Shared support for women in Afghanistan who are being denied right to an education (McPherson).
• Oct 7 – Oral Questions: Asked if the government would commit to lifting arbitrary caps for Afghans and immediately expedite their processing (Kwan).
• Aug 15 – Twitter: Urged LPC to renew & expand the Special Immigration Measures for Afghans in the NDP statement.
• Aug 8 – Letter to Minister: Requested copies of Ukraine and Afghan Ministerial decisions under IRPA section 25.2 (Kwan).
• Mar 4 – Oral Questions: Asked for government action on Afghan refugees who are now embroiled in the crisis in Ukraine (Kwan).
• Mar 3 – Debates: Proposed extending Family Sponsorship Reunification to Ukrainian and Afghan refugees (Kwan).
• Mar 2 – Oral Questions: Called on the government to implement visa-free travel for Ukrainians coming to Canada, comparing the situation to Afghanistan (Singh).

CIMM Member

Jenny Kwan
(Vancouver East, BC)
Caucus Chair; Long-standing Critic for Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship; Critic for Housing

Topics of Interest

• Withdrawal from the Safe Third Country Agreement and Roxham Road
• Rights, safety and precariousness of Caregivers and other migrant workers
• Processing capacity and backlogs
• Extending the definition of family for reunification

Other Active Members

Alexandre Boulerice
(Rosemont-La Petite-Patrie, QB)

Randall Garrison
(Esquimalt-Saanich-Sooke, BC)

Bloc Québécois

Top Party Issues

The party often compares the government’s response to Ukraine with its response to Afghanistan, believing that the Government's response in Afghanistan is rooted in racism.

Recent Party Activity

• Nov 25 – SDIR: Inquired whether the Criminal Code will be amended to allow NGOs to work in Afghanistan (Brunelle-Duceppe).
• Oct 21 – CIMM: Asked a stakeholder if they felt that IRCC was ill-prepared when the Afghan crisis occurred, and if IRCC should have an emergency mechanism that it can put in place quickly, rather than being caught off guard in an international crisis (Brunelle-Duceppe).
• Oct 18 – CIMM: Inquired whether the crisis in Afghanistan affected processing times for other applicants (Brunelle-Duceppe).
• May 12 – Debates: Criticized the CPC for creating the Afghanistan committee as a tool to play partisan politics (Bergeron).
• Mar 21 – Twitter: Commented on Afghan study permits being refused by IRCC because the students are unlikely to return to Afghanistan (Brunelle-Duceppe).
• Feb 28 – Debates: Suggested that the “west” had demonstrated weakness through the situation in Afghanistan and that it would embolden hostile foreign entities (Bergeron).
• Feb 17 – Debates: Moved a motion in the House on support and assurance for Canadian NGOs operating in Afghanistan; this motion was not adopted (Brunelle-Duceppe).
• Jan 31 – AFGH: Inquired about immigration from Afghanistan (Brunelle-Duceppe).

CIMM Member

Alexis Brunelle-Duceppe
(Lac-Saint-Jean)
Second Vice-Chair of CIMM; Critic for Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, Human Rights

Topics Of Interest

• Francophone immigration, including international students from French-speaking countries in Africa
• Immigration measures for Afghanistan
• Taking a stand against China in relation to the Uyghur genocide
• Suspending the Safe Third Country Agreement and irregular migration at Roxham Road
• Quebec interests and protection of the French language
• Human rights conflicts
• Processing delays
• Family reunification

Other Active Members

Yves-François Blanchet
(Beloeil—Chambly, QB)
Leader of the BQ

Alain Therrien
(La Prairie, QB)
House Leader of BQ

Kristina Michaud
(Avignon—La Mitis—Matane—Matapédia, QB)
Critic for Climate Change, Youth, Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness

Liberal Party of Canada

Top Party Issues

Party efforts are focused on achieving the Immigration Levels and has committed to resettle 40,000 eligible Afghan refugees.

The most recently announced 2023-2025 Immigration Levels Plan and Fall Economic Statement lay out a path to further increase immigration, including the commitment to Afghanistan.

Recent Party Activity

• Nov 29 – Oral Questions: Highlighted that more than 25,000 Afghan refugees have been resettled in Canada (Minister Fraser).
• Oct 26 – Oral Questions: Asked the Prime Minister to inform the House on the progress that has been made so far towards this government’s commitment to resettle at least 40,000 Afghan refugees by the end of next year.
• May 17 – Member Statements – Thanked the government for helping Afghans flee Afghanistan and settle in Canada (Hepfner).
• Mar 11 – Twitter: Pointed to the number of Afghan refugees settled in Canada and lauded Afghan women on the occasion of International Women’s Day (Minister Fraser).
• Mar 4 – News Release: Highlighted the number of Afghans that have come to Canada and announced new supports from Canadian educational institutions (Minister Fraser).
• Mar 4 – Oral Questions: In response to an inquiry on the status of Afghan refugees trapped in Ukraine, reasserted the government’s commitment to settling 40,000 Afghans (Minister Fraser).
• Mar 3 – Twitter: Noted a recent presentation to the University of Ottawa “University Women Helping Afghan Women” group, during which ideas to help Afghan refugees were discussed, with a focus on Afghan women (Lalonde).
• Mar 1 – CIMM: Asked why the government would consider visa-free entry for Ukraine when this measure was not offered for Afghanistan or Syria (Ali).
• Mar 1 – CIMM: Agreed with MP Kwan’s proposal that IRCC resources be added to cope with the situation in Ukraine rather than reallocated within the Department as was done for the Afghanistan operation, as MP Dhaliwal believed this approach unsatisfactory (Dhaliwal).
• Feb 17 – Oral Questions: Pointed to the government’s ongoing commitment to settle 40,000 Afghan refugees (Minister Fraser).

CIMM Members

Salma Zahid
(Scarborough Centre, ON)
Chair of SCIM

Topics of Interest

• Health and safety protocols regarding COVID-19
• Gender equality
• Advocacy for Muslim women

Shafqat Ali
(Brampton Centre, ON)

Pam Damoff
(Oakville-Nord-Burlington, ON)

Fayçal El-Khoury
(Laval—Les Îles, QC)
Member of the panel of chairs for the legislative committees; Was Member of AFGH

Arielle Kayabaga
(London West, ON)
Member of LANG

Marie-France Lalonde
(Orléans, ON)
Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship; Member of SCIM