Liberal Immigration Minister Marc Miller admitted that gang members were exploiting vulnerabilities in Canada’s immigration system and slipping into the country undetected.
In a press conference with ethnic media outlets on Monday, Miller was asked how criminals from India can slip through the vetting process and come to Canada.
Miller admitted that gang members are coming into the country, implying that it was inevitable when dealing with sophisticated criminal organizations.
“Well-determined actors regardless of the country, and particularly sophisticated gangs, are often able to get around even the most stringent immigration requirements,” said Miller.
“Canada has some of the most robust requirements in the world when we are checking people, but it’s not perfect.”
While Miller did not specifically name India, he said that the Canadian government often admits immigrants from countries whose governments are unreliable, allowing gang members to slip in with phoney police background checks.
“We all know how unreliable at times depending on the country that police certificates can be and if we were to rely on a country that is sometimes not the most – well I would say a reluctant partner, those certificates often become quite questionable as to their reliability.”
Miller touted the federal government’s immigration vetting process, however, admitted that criminals are coming into the country to commit crimes.
“Regrettably at times people do get in and they do commit crimes. Well-determined actors do have an ability despite best efforts to get in.”
In recent years, the Trudeau government has increased the government’s immigration targets to record levels, as Canada has seen a massive surge of immigrants coming to Canada, with a substantial number coming from India.
According to Statistics Canada, between 2016-2021, the top country of birth for recent immigrants is India, responsible for nearly a fifth of all newcomers to Canada.
The Trudeau government has also substantially increased the number of international study permits granted, with the figure rising to 807,730 as of 2022.
Of the 807,730 international students in Canada, 319,000 study permit holders are from India.
The government of Canada’s relationship with the Indian government has deteriorated over recent years.
Last year, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau rose in the House of Commons to accuse the government of India of killing Canadian citizen Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Surrey, B.C., resulting in a sharp reaction from the Indian government and the expulsion of a majority of Canada’s ambassadors in India from the country.