VICTORY FOR APPLICANTS! Court Rules Against Kenney’s “Deleting Of Immigration Files”

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By R. Paul Dhillon

OTTAWA– A Canadian court rebuked Immigration Minister Jason Kenney, aka minister of deportation, for haphazardly deleting files of applicants under the skilled worker program who applied in a reasonable and timely manner.

In a stinging rebuke from the federal court Thursday, Justice Donald Rennie ruled the government is obliged to process all applications it accepted into the system.

The decision comes after approximately 900 applicants under the federal skilled workers’ program sued Immigration Minister Jason Kenney for breaking the government’s obligation to process the applications received within a reasonable time frame.

Liberal Citizenship and Immigration critic Kevin Lamoureux criticized Kenney’s handling of the immigration backlog and fix the backlog.

“Minister Kenney claims that the Conservatives have fixed the immigration system and fixed the backlog, yet this decision leaves no question that they have done nothing but add further delays and inequality among those seeking to come to this country,” Lamoureux said.

“The Court has provided a clear and important direction in the handling of the backlog – clearly stating that the Minister has overshot his mandate in picking and choosing immigrants.

“The federal government has a responsibility to process all applications it receives and to do so in a timely manner. Will the Minister respect this ruling and finally treat immigrants with the respect and fairness they deserve?””

NDP Immigration critic Jinny Sims also chastised Kenney, saying the court has rightly ruled against the Conservatives’ reckless immigration bill. She called on the government to do the right thing and finally process the immigration applications the government once deemed eligible for processing.

“The Minister can’t simply ‘delete’ this problem as he tried to do with the backlog,” said Sims in Friday’s Question Period in the House of Commons.

“The people who have waited patiently in the backlog followed the rules. They did everything correctly and they are being punished because the Conservatives are looking for an easy way out of a problem they and the former Liberal government created. Will the Conservatives do the right thing, apply the court decision to the outstanding applications, and play by the rules themselves?”

“The court’s decision highlights the recklessness of this Conservative bill,” said Sims.

“The Minister of Immigration has no plan. He’s making it up as he goes and it’s Canadians who will pay the price. Will the government comply with Justice Rennie’s decision? Will it process the outstanding applicants?”