ORDER/ADDRESS OF THE HOUSE OF COMMONS ORDRE/ADRESSE DE LA CHAMBRE DES COMMUNES Now 7 BIDE TATE Q-283 Mr. Harris (St. John's East) May 29, 2009 / 29 mai 2009 ‘RETURN BY THE LEADER OF THE GOVERNMENT INTHE HOUSE OF COMMONS ‘DEPOT DU LEADER DU GOUVERNEMENT A LA CHAMBRE DES COMMUNES. ‘QUATRE utsreR on A RUAMENTARY SECRET _MOUSTRE OU BEORETAREPARLEMENTARE SEP 1 4.2008) (TABLED FORTHWITH / DEPOSE AUSSITOT)INQUIRY OF MINISTRY DEMANDE DE RENSEIGNEMENT AU GOUVERNEMENT PREPARE IN ENGLISH AND FRENCH MARKING "ORIGINAL TEXT” OR “TRANSLATION” PREPARER EN ANGLAIS ET EN FRANCAIS EN INDIQUANT "TEXTE ORIGINAL" OU "TRADUCTION" ‘THESTONNON OETA UESTON | BYTOE OnE 0-283 Mr. Harris (St. John’s East) May 29, 2009 FEBLY BY THE MINISTER OF PUBLIC SAFETY REPONSE OU MINISTRE DE (A SECURIT PUBLQUE —ae— sTER 8 PARLAENTARY SECRETARY LMNSTAE OU SECRETE PARLEMENTARE ‘aUEsTION With respect to the deportation of foreign nationals from Canada, for the last five years: (a) on an annual basis, how many people are deported and to which countries; (b) how many were deported after having been deemed a national security threat, violated immigration rules, or received a criminal conviction; (c) how many countries does the government not deport people to due to concerns of violating the principle of non-refoulement, as codified in international law, including the 1951 Geneva Convention; (d) to which countries does Canada not deport people and why; (e) with regard to countries that have well documented human rights violations, what consideration is given to their records and their potential implications for deportees prior to Canadian government officials making final determinations on whether or not to deport persons, (i) which departments would be involved in such a consideration, (ii) which department is the final authority in making a determination; (f) on what basis would the need to deport a person trump concerns for that person’s welfare after they are deported; (g) with regard to countries that are in the midst of a civil war, what consideration is given to this and its potential implications for a deporte prior to Canadian government officials making a final determination on whether or not to deport a person; (h) what is the annual travel costs of repatriating deportees, as a global figure and a median basis; (i) what is the annual cost of housing deportees in detention prior to their deportation; (j) what is the average time a deportee remains in custody prior to deportation; and (K) currently how many people are waiting to be deported? [REPLY REPONSE. re ne Sere oman. rAuCTON Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) (@) For the past five years, the CBSA has averaged approximately 12,000 removals per year. See Appendix A for a removals report by country. Please note: included in Appendix A are individuals that were ordered removed and have departed voluntarily. The annual totals do not include individuals considered stateless. A foreign national may be removed to their country of origin, citizenship, country of last permanent residence, country from which the person arrived or any country which will take the person under Section 241 of the Immigration and Refugee protection regulations.(>) © @ The CBSA has averaged 12,000 removals each year, including approximately 1800 criminal and high priority cases. Individuals found inadmissible to Canada under the Immigration Refugee Protection Act are subsequently ordered removed from Canada. The 5 year breakdown is outlined in the chart below: 2008 1,768 12,698 2007 1,741 12,451 2006 1,883) 12,554 2005 1,804 11,270 2004 1,860 12,164 While the CBSA focuses resources on high priority cases (ie. cases related to national security, serious criminality, etc.), the majority of removals (85%) involve failed refugee claimants, given the steady high volume of such cases. This approach is necessary in maintaining the integrity of Canada’s immigration and refugee program. ‘The CBSA removal tracking system records those who are removed for criminal activities but does not break those numbers down into specific criminal activity. Canada has a statutory mandate to remove inadmissible individuals to all countries in order to preserve the safety and security of Canadians, maintain the integrity of immigration and refugee programs, and respect the thousands of individuals who come to Canada legally each year. Considerations are given to an individual’s need for protection within the provisions of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act. Those under removal order may apply for a pre-removal risk assessment to determine if there is risk in returning to their home country and may make an application for permanent residence in Canada, based on humanitarian and compassionate reasons. Canada removes inadmissible individuals to all countries except countries where a Temporary Suspension of Removals has been imposed. Temporary suspensions of removals, under section 230 of the Jmmigration and Refugee Protection Regulations, are imposed due to a catastrophic event, such as war or an environmental disaster where the entire civilian population is at generalized risk. Currently, five countries are under a temporary suspension of removals, they include: Afghanistan, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Haiti, Iraq and Zimbabwe. ‘Temporary Suspension of Removals does not apply to individuals who desire to return to their country voluntarily, and to individuals who have a history of crime, pose a danger to Canadian society, or have been convicted of war crimes or crimes against humanity. (GG) A Pre-Removal Risk Assessment is conducted by an independent decision maker from Citizenship and Immigration Canada to determine if there is risk in returning to their country of origin. Individuals areoO @® () not removed if they are found to be at risk, and can, in that event apply for permanent residence in Canada much like a successful refugee claimant. Cases involving security and serious criminality remain in Canada as protected persons, but are not eligible for permanent residency. Every individual with an enforceable removal order may apply for protection and have a risk assessment performed prior to their removal. Individuals found inadmissible for reasons of security, involvement in organized crime, crimes against humanity or serious criminality may be removed based on a determination made by the Minister of Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism that the person’s danger to the public outweighs the risk of harm if he/she were returned to their country of origin. The individual will be afforded the opportunity to make submissions to the Minister on the decision and the Minister’s decision is subject to judicial review by the Federal Court, With respect to the risk of torture specifically, according to the Supreme Court of Canada in Suresh, only in “exceptional circumstances” would removal to a risk of torture be compliant with the Charter ‘The Supreme Court has not ruled on the scope of this exception, and Canada has never used this exception to remove to a risk of torture. In situations of civil war or other catastrophic events causing the entire civilian population of a country to face generalized risk, a Temporary Suspension of Removals or an Administrative Deferral of Removals may be imposed. A Temporary Suspension of Removals relates to the generalized risk experienced by the entire civilian population when specific countries are faced with a catastrophic event, such as war or an environmental disaster. The Minister of Public Safety may suspend removals to countries or places, subject to those circumstances, under section 230 of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations. A Temporary Suspension of Removals is a formal process managed by the CBSA and Citizenship and Immigration Canada through extensive consultations with non-governmental organizations and internal government stakeholders culminating in a recommendation to the Minister of Public Safety to lift, impose, or maintain a Temporary Suspension of Removals. A Temporary Suspension of Removals does not apply to individuals who desire to return to their country voluntarily, and to individuals, who have a history of crime, pose a danger to Canadian society, or have been convicted of war crimes or crimes against humanity. An Administrative Deferral of Removals may be used by the CBSA when immediate action is needed to temporarily defer removals in situations of humanitarian crisis. An Administrative Deferral of ‘Removals is generally imposed under short timeframes with the support of internal government consultations, such as CBSA’s Migration Integrity Officers overseas, Citizenship and Immigration Canada and the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade. Due to financial reporting limitations, CBSA is unable to provide information regarding annual travel costs of repatriating deportees as a global figure and a median basis for the past five years. In fiscal year 2008-2009, there were 3,696 individuals that were in detention at the time of their removal from Canada. The average annual cost of detention per deportee is $4,200. The calculationoO &) is based on a per diem cost of approximately $200 per day and an average of 21 days in detention. The average length of detention prior to their removal (deportation) was 21 days. It should be noted that not all individuals who are to be removed are detained, ‘The average length of detention for those individuals who were removed (deported) that were in detention prior to their removal from Canada was 21 days in the fiscal year 2008-09. As of June 2, 2009, there are 18,604 cases in the removal working inventory where removal is pending travel document applications, travel arrangements, or a Pre-Removal Risk Assessment. There are an additional 44,183 cases where an immigration arrest warrant has been issued. Warrants may be issued for individuals whose whereabouts are unknown or who have left Canada without confirming their departure with a CBSA officer.