(Disponible uniquement en anglais)
Via email: michelle.rempel@parl.gc.ca
The Honourable Michelle Rempel Garner, M.P.
Shadow Minister for Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship
House of Commons
Ottawa, ON K1A 0A6
Dear Michelle Rempel Garner:
On behalf of the Immigration Law Section of the Canadian Bar Association (CBA Section), we congratulate you on your re-appointment as Shadow Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship.
The Canadian Bar Association is a national association of 40,000 members, including lawyers, notaries, academics and students across Canada, with a mandate to seek improvements in the law and the administration of justice. The CBA Section is comprised of over 1,000 lawyers, practising in all aspects of immigration, refugee and citizenship law and rendering professional advice and representation in the Canadian immigration system to clients in Canada and abroad.
At a time when Canada’s immigration system faces new global, technological, and demographic shifts, we know your portfolio is central to shaping the future of immigration and ensuring it reflects Canada’s values. The CBA Section has articulated its vision for the future of immigration in the attached submission: “Law, Technology, and Accountability: Reimagining Canadian Immigration for the 21st Century”.
Many of our proposals speak directly to areas you advocated for during your first term as Shadow Minister for Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship in 2015:
- Improving system integrity and transparency;
- Reducing backlogs and improving efficiency;
- Streamlining refugee protection;
- Digitizing and modernizing immigration operations;
- Enhancing family reunification; and
- Strengthening intergovernmental collaboration.
Developed by practitioners working daily with the system, the submission reflects the lived realities of individuals, families, and communities who rely on it, and offers a roadmap for a more principled, effective and modern immigration system.
We welcome the opportunity to meet with you to explore how the CBA Section can continue to contribute meaningfully to immigration policy development and reform efforts. Should it be helpful, please feel free to have your staff contact Yves Faguy, Executive Director of Advocacy at the CBA, at yvesf@cba.org.
Yours truly,
(original letter signed by Véronique Morissette for Kamaljit Kaur Lehal)
Kamaljit Kaur Lehal
Chair, CBA Immigration Law Section
Appendix: Law, Technology, and Accountability: Reimagining Canadian Immigration for the 21st Century