Parliamentary Committee Notes: Borders
Commitments:
- Introduction of legislation to create a review body for the Canada Border Services Agency (Bill C-20)
- Safe, responsible and compassionate management of the border
- Modernize infrastructure and processes at ports of entry to ensure the safety, security and integrity of Canada’s borders, including addressing irregular migration and combatting the trafficking of firearms and illicit drugs.
Overarching message on progress and priorities
- Public Safety Canada is committed to strengthening the safety and security of Canada's borders.
- The Department continues to work closely with portfolio agencies to increase law enforcement accountability by supporting the advancement of Bill C-20, which would provide for robust independent review of the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP).
- Public Safety is also advancing efforts aimed at modernizing public-facing infrastructure such as optimizing and digitizing services and streamlining border clearance processes.
- In order to counter cross-border crime and irregular migration, the Department continues to engage with United States counterparts to further deepen collaboration and joint management of the border, and ensure integrity of both sides of the border.
Introduce legislation to create a review Body for the CBSA
- On May 19, 2022, the Government introduced Bill C-20, which would create a new standalone statute to establish the Public Complaints and Review Commission, or PCRC, as the new independent civilian review body for both the RCMP and the CBSA.
- As the committee knows, under Bill C-20, the PCRC would continue to fulfill the complaints and review mandate of the Civilian Review and Complaints Commission (CRCC) for the RCMP, with increased accountability tools at its disposal.
- Bill C-20 would extend this mandate to the CBSA, which currently does not have an independent mechanism to review public complaints regarding CBSA employee conduct or level of service.
- I want to take this opportunity to thank the Committee for its study of the bill, which is currently at the report stage.
- I remain committed to working collaboratively with colleagues to advance this important legislation, which will contribute to increased trust and confidence in Canada’s public safety.
Safe, responsible and compassionate management of the border - Modernize infrastructure and processes at ports of entry
- I can assure the Committee that every day, we work tirelessly to advance these ongoing commitments to protect the health, safety and security of our communities and economy.
- The CBSA continues to advance its vision for the border of the future. This includes exploring ways to optimize and digitize services, with a view to streamlining the border clearance process, reducing the need for physical interactions, and facilitating the cross-border flow of legitimate travel and trade.
- For instance, the CBSA is advancing its Assessment and Revenue Management, or CARM, project to transform the collection of duties and taxes for imported goods.
- This multi-phased initiative, which aims at providing Canadian businesses an online self-service tool and simplified importing processes, is planned to come into force in May 2024.
- Another example of work to modernize Canada’s borders is the development of the Advance Travel Declaration, which provides travellers with the option to submit their customs and immigration declaration online, up to 72 hours in advance of their arrival in Canada. This will reduce wait times at the border, providing a better and faster experience to travelers.
- In parallel, we continue to take action to combat the cross-border movement of firearms and illicit drugs, as well as to respond to irregular migration.
- To do so, we collaborate with our United States counterparts on a variety of cross-border initiatives to ensure the integrity of our border.
- On April 28, 2023, we held the Canada-U.S. Cross-Border Crime Forum (CBCF), here in Ottawa. This ministerial meeting allowed us to assess progress and renew commitments on collaborative efforts to counter cross-border crime, including issues related to fentanyl/opioids, firearms violence, and human smuggling, and examine opportunities to improve on these efforts.
- At the operational level, collaboration to respond to cross-border crime also continues through various channels such as the Cross-Border Firearms Task Force, the Integrated Border Enforcement Teams and the Cross-border Maritime Law Enforcement Operations.
Background
Bill C-20
Introduced on May 19, 2022, Bill C-20 would enact a new standalone statute to establish the Public Complaints and Review Commission (PCRC) as the new independent civilian review body for both the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) and the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA).
The PCRC would continue to fulfill the existing Civilian Review and Complaints Commission’s (CRCC) complaints and review mandate for the RCMP, with increased accountability tools at its disposal. Bill C-20 would extend this mandate to the CBSA, which currently does not have an independent mechanism to review public complaints regarding their employees’ conduct or level of service. This expanded mandate would be reinforced through the addition of more robust powers for the PCRC, as well as additional mechanisms to enhance the accountability of the RCMP and CBSA such as codified timelines, annual reporting to the Minister of Public Safety, the collection of disaggregated race-based data and providing the Chairperson more discretion to conduct specified activity reviews.
The Standing Committee on Public Safety and National Security (SECU) finalized its study of Bill C-20 on November 9, 2023, and made 46 amendments. As of March 2024, the bill remains at Report Stage.
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