CPAC: Canada Introduces citizenship bill with NDP amendments to fix Lost Canadians injustice

Today is a historic day for Lost Canadians and their families and I am happy to stand with them and the Minister of Immigration at the press conference.

Legislation has been introduced to rectify the Conservative's punitive and unconstitutional law that stripped children of Canadian parents the right to Canadian citizenship creating two classes of Canadians. Today is a historic day for Lost Canadians and their families and I am happy to stand with them and the Minister of Immigration at the press conference.

For 15 years, this unjust law caused significant hardship and suffering to many Canadian families. It has separated families and rendered children stateless. If failed to recognize that Canadians are global citizens who travel aboard, study aboard and work aboard. They fall in love aboard and they have families aboard.

Last year, parliamentarians across party lines had a chance to fix the Lost Canadians issue by passing Bill S-245 as amended by the NDP. Instead, the Conservatives filibustered debate on the bill for 30 hours to delay its passage and refuse to allow it to advance to third reading.

When it became obvious that the Conservatives will continue playing games with the lives of Lost Canadians and their families by doing everything they can to block passage of the legislative fixes, I approached successive immigration ministers to call on them to bring in a government bill with the NDP amendments.

The government has a moral imperative and a legal one to act after the Ontario Superior Court of Justice ruled that the creation of two classes of Canadian citizenship is unconstitutional.

Let's pass the bill expeditiously and end the legacy of the Conservatives' unconstitutional treatment of second generation born abroad Canadians.

Click the link below to watch the press conference in Parliament:

https://www.cpac.ca/headline-politics/episode/minister-miller-discusses-new-citizenship-bill?id=d80699f3-3920-4202-8701-920c0b65d77f

Latest posts

OPEN LETTER: Third Post Office Closure in Vancouver East – Urgent Concerns Regarding Equitable Access to Postal Services

MEDIA RELEASE: Statement on Changes to Express Entry

MP Jenny Kwan Statement on Changes to Express Entry

The recent changes reflect the government’s elitist view that the people who make the most money are the most valuable immigrants. This offensive notion that a person’s worth is determined by their salary does not reflect the values of Canadians. Under this approach, workers who fall below the government’s high-wage threshold risk being left behind, including essential workers, caregivers, health-care workers and tradespeople whose contributions are indispensable to our communities and economy. Their value cannot be reduced to the size of a paycheque.

The government is also creating serious risks by offering up to 100 additional Express Entry points for qualifying high-wage job offers without requiring a Labour Market Impact Assessment, or LMIA. The existing LMIA system has already been plagued by fraud, including the illicit buying and selling of assessments. Removing this requirement without demonstrating that equivalent safeguards are in place raises serious concerns about the integrity of the immigration system. Instead of the LMIA process, individual immigration officers will be responsible for verifying whether job offers are genuine and employers are legitimate businesses. This will place additional demands on an already stretched system, create opportunities for fraud and risk increasing processing times.

There is another fundamental concern: without the LMIA process, the government will no longer assess through that mechanism whether Canadians are available to fill these positions. This is an important tool to assess if there is a genuine need to go outside of Canada to fill these positions.

Canada needs an immigration system that values workers fairly, protects people from exploitation and responds to genuine labour-market needs—not one that privileges high earners while leaving essential workers behind.

The government must establish clear, stable pathways to permanent residency for people already in Canada, including international graduates and temporary workers who have contributed to their communities. Immigration selection should reflect the full range of Canada's labour needs, not simply prioritize higher-wage occupations.

We are seeing a pattern of policy lurching on immigration from the Carney government that is creating confusion and chaos for people navigating the system. International students, temporary workers and families make major decisions about education, employment and their futures based on government rules. When those rules repeatedly change, people are left wondering whether their investments and contributions will still count. The government cannot keep moving the goalposts and expect people to plan their lives with confidence. Canada needs a coherent, long-term immigration strategy with predictable pathways, clear objectives and fair transition measures. The immigration system has gone backwards under the Carney government. This government has directly caused chaos on the immigration file.

OPEN LETTER to Immigration and Public Safety Minister on Palestinian study visa applications

Despite promises that processing would be completed in 10 days, more than 130 Palestinian students accepted into Canadian universities remain trapped in extreme delay, with some losing their admissions or risking their lives while waiting.

I issued an open letter calling on Ministers Lena Diab and Gary Anandasangaree to immediately address this crisis. The government must apply existing flexibility rules for biometrics in Gaza, conduct a second review of rejected applications relying on generic refusal reasons, and establish a dedicated mechanism to ensure fair, individualized, and timely decisions.