OTTAWA, ON — Tom Kmiec, Conservative Shadow Minister for Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, and Brad Redekopp, Vice Chair of the Standing Committee on Citizenship and Immigration, made the following statement regarding international students facing deportation, despite being given a visa:
“For weeks, Conservative Members of Parliament have urged the Government to provide a solution for hundreds of international students suffering because of Justin Trudeau’s incompetence.
“We moved four motions at Immigration Committee, and each time, the Liberals and their NDP coalition partner blocked our attempts to address this issue. Only after immense pressure from the protesting students and Conservative members did the Liberals finally relent and implement our ideas.
“Pierre Poilievre, Leader of the Conservative Party of Canada, has called on the Liberals to:
1. Launch individual investigations into each case.
2. Stop the deportation of international students affected by fake admission letter scams.
3. Grant interim study and work permits while the investigations are underway.
4. Allow all those who did not act in bad faith to stay and apply for permanent residency.
5. Immediately stop making the mistakes that caused this mess and, from now on, contact universities or colleges to confirm that acceptance letters are authentic before student visas are offered.
“Thanks to Conservative pressure, we are pleased to see that Immigration Minister Sean Fraser finally announced the first tentative steps towards these goals prior to his appearance at committee. These students are victims. Conservatives will never stop fighting to fix our broken immigration system.
