Two more airports to feature U.S. screening

OTTAWA • After a lengthy delay, Canada has finally passed legislation to ratify a border preclearance agreement signed with the United States in 2015.

The passage of Bill C-23, which received royal assent Tuesday, paves the way for U.S. preclearance facilities at Toronto’s Billy Bishop airport and Quebec City’s airport, meaning they can send flights to any U.S. airport (rather than only those with international customs facilities). Eight Canadian airports have U.S. preclearance.

The American government passed its own enabling legislation last year. David MacNaughton, Canada’s ambassador to the U.S., had been urging MPs and senators to get C-23 moving through Parliament, as the bill was introduced back in June 2016.

Canada now needs to enact regulations on the new preclearance regime before the agreement is fully ratified, then the airports will have to sign cost-recovery and operational agreements with the U.S. border agency. It will likely take at least a year.

A statement from Billy Bishop Airport said the terminal is undergoing an upgrade that includes space for a preclearance facility.

“We hope to have an Operations Agreement with U.S. Customs Border Patrol negotiated in short order and look forward to getting the facility up and running as quickly as possible,” it said.

The bill was hotly contested by civil liberties groups who argued it gives too much power to American border guards working on Canadian soil, particularly given the suspicions expressed toward Muslim travellers by U.S. President Donald Trump.

The critics focused on the bill’s expanded powers for American guards to stripsearch travellers and to interrogate anybody attempting to leave a preclearance area. Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale said past experience shows the powers would be rarely used, if ever.

MPs and senators were also warned substantial amendments to the bill ran the risk of having to renegotiate the entire agreement and C-23 was eventually passed with only minor changes.

One change added an “administrative remedy” for travellers who were mistreated by an American border guard. It sets up a process to submit their complaint to Canadian officials on the “Preclearance Consultative Group,” which administers the agreement.

This recourse was derided as far too weak by critics. Although the legislation specifies all searches must be done in compliance with Canada’s Charter of Rights and Freedoms, the American guards are immune from civil proceedings here.

There are no Canadian pre-clearance facilities in the U.S., but McNaughtan said the government will look at whether there are certain airports that would be worth setting one up in.