The Senate

Honourable senators, I’m happy to speak today on my colleague Senator Simons’ motion which proposes that Canada create our own verified, trusted travellers program for domestic travel.

Today, many Canadian travellers benefit from simplified security procedures and dedicated lines under the NEXUS program, which is operated collaboratively by Canada and the U.S. Currently, Canadians wishing to apply for a NEXUS card must submit to be interviewed by American as well as Canadian border officials. Given the current political climate, there are many Canadians who no longer feel comfortable with this.

Senator Simons’ proposal is to create a Canadian-controlled verified traveller program for Canadians and permanent residents travelling domestically. This is a sensible proposal that has won the support of the Canadian Airports Council.

I believe this is a common-sense approach that will both simplify travel and empower us to stand up for our values. It will allow more Canadians to access pre-screening. And it will be a more inclusive option, given the United States’ recent refusal to recognize passports listing genders other than male or female.

Canada’s international reputation for inclusivity, safety and good governance is something we should be doubling down on. A well-managed Canada-run verified traveller system, one that doesn’t discriminate against gender-diverse Canadians, would allow us to live up to that reputation domestically.

For most people, a NEXUS card is just a faster way to get through the airport or across the border. But we shouldn’t lose sight of the fact that trusted traveller programs are, at their core, about national security.

Canadian leaders from every side of the political spectrum have spoken about our need to affirm our sovereignty and bolster our independence from the U.S. — for good reason. It seems to me that relying on American officials for traveller pre-screening sends the opposite message.

As Senator Simons recently told CBC:

It is unusual for a country to contract out its airport security fast-pass system to a different sovereign nation. We’ve just sort of been piggybacking on the NEXUS process using it as a proxy.

The Canadian system she proposes would not replace the current NEXUS regime. It’s important to note that the United States already has their own domestic verified traveller program, separate from NEXUS. There is no reason to believe that Canada doing the same would jeopardize the ability of Canadians and Canadian permanent residents to apply for Nexus cards. It would simply create another option, allowing eligible travellers to access shorter lines and faster screenings while travelling domestically without having to go through U.S. chains of approval.

Frankly, it doesn’t make sense that someone travelling from Ottawa to Winnipeg or from Calgary to Vancouver should require U.S. approval to access trusted traveller benefits within our own country.

I’d like to digress to talk about the state of Canada’s airports, which is a hot topic in the tourism community. This is a subject most people don’t spend a lot of time thinking about beyond calculating how early they’ll need to leave to make their flight.

As senators from every corner of the country, we spend more time in airports than most. I’m sure all of us have seen first-hand some of the inefficiencies that create hassles for travellers: long lines, understaffing, flight delays, et cetera.

As many in the chamber know, I serve as Co-Chair of the Parliamentary Tourism Caucus. One of our top priorities and something we often hear from stakeholders in the tourism and transportation sector is the need to make it easier to travel to and within Canada.

Why does this matter so much? Because travellers remember bad experiences. They remember the inconveniences of excessive wait times at security, of missed connections, of needing assistance and no one being available. These experiences undermine confidence in the Canadian system. They discourage domestic tourism and make business travel less efficient. They act as a mark against us when we’re in contention to host large international conferences and events.

It pains me to say this, as we have so much to offer travellers — from our safe and modern cities to our one-of-a-kind natural landmarks — but to fully take advantage of Canada’s potential, we need to reduce the barriers and streamline our processes.

This is one of the reasons I’m personally excited about the idea of creating a made-in-Canada verified traveller program. By making it easier for more Canadians and permanent residents to be recognized as trusted travellers, such a program could play a role in shortening security lines and making travel within Canada more effective.

More broadly, it’s also an example of the kind of innovative thinking we’ll have to embrace if we want to uplift domestic tourism and elevate Canada as a world-class destination.

This idea is an opportunity to better meet the needs of Canadian travellers and incentivize domestic tourism, all while standing up for our national sovereignty. It seems like a win-win to me.

Thank you.

(On motion of Senator Martin, debate adjourned.)