REPORT OF THE COMMITTEE
Thursday, November 28, 2013
The Standing Senate Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Trade has the honour to table its
THIRD REPORT
Your committee, which was authorized to examine the subject-matter of those elements contained in Divisions 4 And 16 of Part 3 of Bill C-4, A second act to implement certain provisions of the budget tabled in parliament on March 21, 2013 and other measures, has, in obedience to the order of reference of Tuesday, November 5, 2013, examined the said subject matter and now reports as follows:
Between November 20 and November 28, 2013 your committee held four meetings and heard from 14 witnesses, including Canadian government officials and key stakeholders, as well as government officials from New Zealand. Following that testimony, your committee offers the following comments.
A. Division 4 of Part 3
Division 4 of Part 3 makes two amendments in relation to passports. These amendments are largely for the purpose of ensuring that the appropriate Minister is referred to in the Criminal Code and the Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development Act, given that since July 1, 2013, passports are now administered by the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration rather than the Minister of Foreign Affairs.
This is not the first time that the committee has examined the delivery of passport services. In 2012, the committee studied Passport Canada in the context of its fee-for-service proposal to Parliament. Over the course of those three meetings, the committee heard from eleven witnesses, including Passport Canada, officials from Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada, Canadian Border Services Canada, Service Canada, as well as the Office of the Auditor General and stakeholders. Their testimony was re-circulated to committee members to provide additional context for the present study of Bill C-4.
Considering this past testimony, the committee heard from officials representing the Passport Transition Office and Passport Program Management and Strategic Initiatives at Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) in the context of Bill C-4. Having heard their testimony that the transfer of authority for Passport Canada from Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development Canada (DFATD) to CIC, was done for reasons of cost-efficiency, alignment of all programs pertaining to citizenship, and optimizing new technologies and management systems, the committee supports this change. It awaits a formal response from relevant authorities that confirms the cost efficiencies in general of the transfer and the cost of any information technology upgrades that were subsequently required.
Therefore, the committee recommends that Division 4 of Part 3 be approved without amendment.
B. Division 16 of Part 3
Division 16 of Part 3 amends the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA) to create an “Expression of Interest” (EOI) system. EOI is a pre-application process that automatically ranks foreign nationals intending to immigrate to Canada permanently through certain economic streams before inviting them to apply for permanent residence. The system includes a detailed list of elements, notably the criteria against which candidates will be measured and ranked, that the Minister may set out in “instructions” to guide its implementation.
The committee heard from various witnesses, including officials from CIC and from the New Zealand Government, which implemented a similar EOI system in 2003. The committee agrees with witnesses that the EOI system is a good initiative: it is likely to accelerate the arrival to Canada of skilled economic immigration applicants who are highly responsive to labour market requirements, have obtained offers of employment, or have been nominated by a province or territory. Such a system is also necessary in order to improve the competitiveness of Canada’s economic immigration system in attracting much-needed and the best-skilled labour.
The EOI system does not supplant existing programs and does not apply to applications to the non-economic immigration streams, which will continue to be considered according to existing eligibility requirements and processes.
Therefore, the committee recommends that Division 16 of Part 3 be approved without amendment.
The committee heard expression of concern about privacy. The committee encourages the Government of Canada and the appropriate authorities to consult with the Privacy Commissioner to ensure that the risks of violating an individual’s privacy under new section 10.4 of the IRPA are diminished.
To ensure the success of the EOI system when it is launched as expected in January 2015, the committee further recommends that CIC and other government departments undertake satisfactory consultations with relevant stakeholders, including industry and professional associations as well as provinces and territories.
Such consultations should be used to define clearly the key elements of the EOI system that are not included in Bill C-4, including the Ministerial Instructions (MIs) that set out in part the criteria according to which applicants will be ranked and the threshold to be met. Witnesses commented that such scrutiny and consultations would strengthen the accuracy of the instructions’ reflection of changing labour market and economic needs, Canadian licencing boards’ foreign credential recognition standards, and, ultimately, the effectiveness of MIs in ranking candidates.
Respectfully submitted,
RAYNELL ANDREYCHUK
Chair