POLITICIZING OF REFUGEES MUST STOP

For decades, Canada had an immigration system that was the envy of the world. We welcomed hundreds of thousands of immigrants per year from countries all around the world. Along the way, we also invited tens of thousands of refugees in their moment of need.

This wasn’t just about opening our doors wide open though, without any thought to how it was done. We did all this on our own terms, setting the qualifications and the volume of arrivals based on what was best for our national interests. This approach has largely been a success.

The past few years have seen Canada abandon this approach and, not unsurprisingly, Canadians have begun to lose faith in the system.

And it’s happened in large part thanks to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s simplistic attitude towards immigration.

Things got off to a bad start right away, with Trudeau pledging to admit a fixed amount of Syrian refugees on a rushed timeline. This had the effect of straining both our security screening and our social service agencies. No one was well-served by this approach. And it was all done for political gain, for Trudeau to posture that he had a bigger heart than former PM Stephen Harper and former NDP leader Tom Mulcair.

Then there’s Trudeau’s failure to manage the illegal border crossing at Roxham Road. The crossing is now quasi-permanent, with dozens of people entering Canada every day. The big problem with this is that they’re entering on their own terms, they’re self-selected migrants. And they’re abandoned to municipal social services once they do cross.

Then there was Trudeau’s recent attempt to try to slip the UN Global Compact on Migration past us without any public debate.

You’d think Trudeau would appear contrite. Instead, he’s revelling in the opportunity to scrap over these issues.

During a recent year-end interview with The Canadian Press, he rolled out his now common refrain on immigration accusing everyone but him of fearmongering and misinformation. He hectors people to get them onside with his views.

Good luck with that approach. Trudeau needs to stop the politicization of this complex issue. We need results and honest discussion. Not self-serving partisanship.