Letters to the Editor

2005

November 7, 2005

National Post
Doug Kelly, Editor-in-Chief
300 - 1450 Don Mills Road,
Don Mills, Ontario
Canada
M3B 3R5

Dear Mr. Kelly,

I am writing in response to the editorial published on November 7, 2005 entitled Bordering on Indifference. I was surprised to see an editorial on the same subject as the article entitled Quotas Trump Security, dated October 31st, without reference to the letter sent to you on the same date signed by Barbara Hébert, Vice President, Operations for Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA).

Last week's article and today's editorial insinuated that CBSA managers received performance pay based on the number of searches conducted by our border officers. That is simply untrue. Our performance pay system is consistent with the Government of Canada rules and is not tied to any quota system. The Border Management Plan is just one of a number of tools that is prepared to assist managers in focusing on high-risk shipments and individuals. They use that information as a guideline to determine how to deploy their resources. At no time would the Border Management Plan override the requirement for field operations to deal with an immediate and/or emerging threat or risk. We are pushing for intelligence-based high-risk checks, and the Border Management Plan advances our capacity to do so.

Regarding your comments comparing Canada with our neighbouring partners, this is another misrepresentation. In fact, Canada matches the United States step-by-step with emerging technology, risk management, information sharing and use of automated risk analysis systems to ensure the security of our borders. Indeed, we have harmonized our systems and procedures with those of the United States. Canada and the United States have been working very closely on finding solutions to ensure that our North American borders are secure. It is a work in progress, and one that we are committed to as fully as our American counterparts. Since 2001 the Government of Canada has increased spending on national security initiatives by over $9 billion, with a significant portion of this being directed to CBSA and border initiatives.

I note that your editorial, and the previous article, were solely based on a report by the leadership of one of our unions, the Customs and Excise Union Douanes Accise (CEUDA). You would do well to consider both sides of the story before accepting the self-interested misrepresentations of CEUDA at face value. I would be pleased to meet with you to provide you with a true picture of how the Canada Border Services Agency manages our country's borders.

Sincerely,

Alain Jolicoeur
President
Canada Border Services Agency