Home Newsroom 2005 Speeches (archive) McLellan: 2005-02-01

Review of bill C-26 an Act to establish the Canada Border Services Agency

Speaking notes for
The Honourable Anne McLellan
To the subcommittee on Public Safety and National Security

Ottawa, Ontario
February 1, 2005

As delivered

Merci beaucoup, monsieur le président.

First of all, let me thank you all for taking up the challenge of this subcommittee of the Standing Committee on Justice, Human Rights, Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness. Obviously the work you will do with me and with others in the months ahead is very important to the collective safety, security, and general preparedness of our country. So I thank you all for taking up this challenge.

Before I go any further, let me introduce some of the people with me here today: Monsieur Alain Jolicoeur, le président de l'agence; Monsieur Denis Lefebvre, le premier vice-président de l'agence; Bill Pentney, assistant deputy attorney general at the Department of Public Security and Emergency Preparedness; and Daniel Jean, the ADM from Immigration Canada.

I am pleased to appear before you to assist you in your review of Bill C-26, legislation introduced by our government to establish the Canada Border Services Agency.

There is no role more important for the government than to protect its citizens. A vital and flourishing economy is also in the national interest, with trade flowing safely across a safe and secure border. These great issues underlie the decision to unite the administration of Canada's border services under one agency.

The bill under review is the next step, as you heard from the chair, in our government's integrated approach to national security, major elements of which were announced on December 12, 2003, by the Prime Minister. We now have a national security adviser to the Prime Minister and a new cabinet committee devoted to security, public health, and emergencies. The Integrated Threat Assessment Centre, the Public Health Agency, and the health emergency response teams now enable the government to anticipate and manage complex threats more effectively.

We also created the public safety and emergency preparedness portfolio to bring together key national agencies dedicated to public safety, including the CBSA, the Correctional Service of Canada, the RCMP, the Canadian Security Intelligence Service, the Canada Firearms Centre and the National Parole Board. Our job is to protect Canadians and to constantly evaluate information from domestic and international sources to assess the whole range of risks that Canada faces.

The CBSA is a vital component of these efforts. The legislation in front of you will formally establish the agency, enshrining in law its mandate, powers and authorities. This is mainly a machinery bill that vests in the CBSA the same powers and authorities that existed in portions of its three legacy organizations. The bill also includes consequential amendments to various statutes to reflect changes that are generally of an administrative nature.

Though the events of September 11, 2001, served as a catalyst in relation to our understanding of the need for a safe and secure border, our response has addressed a range of challenges that in fact had emerged earlier and will continue to evolve in the future. Terrorist threats, illegal migration, organized crime, and the introduction of previously unknown diseases, such as SARS and the avian flu, all pose serious threats to our way of life. The CBSA's challenge is to protect Canadians while at the same time facilitating the flow of lawful people and trade, and it brings together the components necessary to meet this important goal.

On December 12, the Prime Minister integrated personnel and functions from portions of three larger organizations--the Canada Customs and Revenue Agency (CCRA), Customs and Immigration Canada (CIC), and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) -- into one agency. This transfer brings the total number of CBSA employees to more than 11,000, including customs officers; immigration officers responsible for ports of entry, detention, removals, investigations, intelligence, and immigration control overseas; officials inspecting animal, plant and food imports; and marine inspection officials.

We now have, working together under one roof, a wealth of experience, skill, and innovation in border management. For the first time, our border service professionals are working within the same agency to improve and accelerate protection initiatives already in place, and to develop strategic approaches to border management to keep pace with new and emerging threats.

I would like to give you some examples of how important this agency is to our nation's security and prosperity. Let me first turn to the United States and our relationship with Canada's main partner in the defence of North America. Sharing an 8,000-kilometre border with our neighbour means facilitating over 90 million travellers and 11 million cross-border shipments each year. This is the world's largest trading relationship, and managing this huge cross-border flow is important to the economic security of our country. The Canada-U.S. Smart Border Declaration has resulted in stronger cooperation between Canada and the United States, and highlights a new approach to border management that is an example to the world.

Canadian industry now participates in programs to streamline the border clearance process for pre-approved low-risk travellers and goods. FAST is a harmonized commercial process offered to pre-approved importers, carriers, and registered drivers to facilitate clearance into either Canada or the United States with greater speed and certainty. Frequent cross-border travellers can take advantage of NEXUS, a binational program that simplifies border transit and reduces wait times.

Furthermore, the integrated border enforcement teams, or IBETs, led by the RCMP, unite law enforcement, border, and intelligence personnel from Canada and the United States, and are strategically placed to detect, deter, and apprehend individuals involved in cross-border crime. The model is built on the premise of partnership and on sharing information more effectively to stay one step ahead of criminals and terrorists.

These are but a few examples of our progress to advance our two nations' shared goals of public safety and economic security. We are also making joint progress in the areas of marine and air security, bio-security and critical infrastructure protection. I intend to build on these accomplishments.

In December, I met in Detroit with Tom Ridge to announce a land pre-clearance pilot at the Peace Bridge in Fort Erie, the final implementation of the safe third country regulations, our decision to expand U.S. pre-clearance facilities to the Halifax International Airport, and the expansion of the FAST program. We also announced that 30 additional CBSA officers would be engaged to staff the border at the Windsor-Detroit gateway and we committed to reduce transit times across this vital trade link by 25%. We are moving forward to develop a next-generation smart border agenda, as was committed to recently by Prime Minister Martin and President Bush.

These accomplishments reflect a multiple borders strategy, the interdiction of high-risk travellers and cargo before they arrive in Canada. To that end, we work closely with our partners and deploy migration integrity officers overseas. MIOs work with airlines and local authorities, share intelligence, detect document fraud, and interrupt the flow of illegal migrants, criminals, and persons with terrorist links before they board a plane for Canada.

The work of these officers resulted in an interdiction rate of over 70% in the last two years. This means that of all attempted illegal entries by air, 70% -- or more than 12,000 individuals -- were stopped before they reached Canada. Once there is interdiction at the GTA or wherever, we then of course involve ourselves in a multiplicity of processes that are timely and costly. Therefore, clearly, if we can, for those who have no right to come to this country we want to do the interdiction offshore.

In fact, I think it's fair to say that ours is one of the most successful offshore interdiction programs in the world in terms of the rate of people interdicted offshore as opposed to at an airport, be it Toronto, Vancouver, or wherever.

An advanced commercial information initiative now requires ocean carriers to submit cargo data electronically, 24 hours before the container is loaded in foreign ports. Air and rail aspects of ACI will follow this year. These multiple levels of screening prior to departure -- this is the key -- during transit and upon arrival reflect our investments in better technology tools and training.

In addition to these measures to push the borders out, offshore, from both our country and the United States, we are strengthening the borders at home. For example, in January 2004 we established the National Risk Assessment Centre. Through the analysis and sharing of information, the NRAC increases Canada's ability to detect and interdict the movement of high-risk travellers and goods into the country by using sophisticated intelligence-gathering techniques and technology.

The NRAC ensures the timely distribution of this information to field officers, who are ready to act quickly and decisively to apprehend and stop the entry of terrorists, high-risk people, illegal contraband, drugs and weapons into Canada.

Other new technologies include VACIS, the vehicle and cargo inspection system. VACIS obviously complements our long-standing methods, such as our 69 detector dog teams, to secure the efficient flow of marine and rail containers, cars, trucks and air passengers.

Let me say that I'm very proud of a detector dog whose name is Mickey. Yesterday in British Columbia, Mickey detected, wrapped in fish, $1.4 million worth of cocaine coming from the United States into Canada. I guess the person who is now in detention thought that by wrapping his cocaine in fish skins, Mickey would be put off. I have come to understand that these dogs are not easily put off from the task at hand.

That is only one example of what these detector dog teams, the dogs and their owners, do every day at seaports, land border crossings and airports. Therefore, we use whatever tools make sense in terms of making sure we are interdicting both people and goods.

I would like to publicly congratulate Mickey and his trainer for the outstanding job they did in Vancouver yesterday.

In blending the expertise, tools, and technology from three legacy organizations, we have sharpened our focus, created synergy, and modernized our approach to border management.

Overall, reaction of stakeholders to the creation of the CBSA has been positive. The alignment of border management activities within one organization is generally viewed as strengthening our national security. Canada has a long tradition of welcoming legitimate refugees and immigrants, and that must continue. Nonetheless, part of the CBSA's mandate is to prevent people who should not be in Canada from reaching our borders. We also work to detect those who are in Canada but who are in contravention of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act to ensure they are removed in a timely manner.

Administration of the IRPA is now the shared responsibility of CIC and the CBSA, with CIC focusing on selection, settlement, and integration, and the CBSA becoming the operational arm of immigration policies and procedures developed by CIC. I would point out, however, that in staffing the primary inspection line, our customs officers have always played an important role in welcoming all persons to our country, and they are well trained to perform those functions.

I know an issue has arisen relating to the peace officer status of officers and whether that status applies to immigration officials. I believe, in fact, you will hear from some of these officials. I am open to the examination of this question, and I have asked the CBSA to present me with an analysis of the options.

I would now like to take a minute to speak about privacy issues, because I know these are of concern to committee members. Obviously the protection of sensitive personal information is a key obligation and priority of all aspects of my department and portfolio, and nowhere more so than with the CBSA, which takes its responsibilities for managing personal information very seriously.

The Privacy Commissioner and her office have been consulted by senior officials with the agency and have been reassured that data collection and sharing would be subject to the terms and conditions of applicable legislation. Information is shared with the goal of maintaining and protecting the health and safety of Canadians. This is achieved by sharing information that will aid in the administration and enforcement of citizenship, immigration, customs and food inspection laws. However, the CBSA shares personal information and information related to goods with the specific and sole aim of the protection and safety of Canadians, in accordance with the law.

 Let me say in conclusion how important an obligation it is for the Government of Canada to protect our citizens, economy, and society. To do this we must be able to anticipate and be better prepared to address any and all hazards arriving on our doorstep. The CBSA brings together the expertise needed to do just that. We need to work cooperatively across disciplines, across jurisdictions, and across borders to achieve our objectives. The creation of the Canada Border Services Agency will enhance the safety and security of Canadians while facilitating the cross-border flow of lawful goods.

Thank you very much. Merci beaucoup, for your attention this afternoon.