The Liberals and NDP are pushing for a citizenship bill to move forward without Conservative changes that would require security screening and language checks before children born abroad to foreign-born Canadians could qualify for a passport.
Earlier this month, Conservatives, with the support of the Bloc Québécois, voted through a raft of changes to the government’s proposed legislation, known as Bill C-3.
The bill aims to reverse a change by Stephen Harper’s Conservative government in 2009 that stripped people born into this situation, who are often known as Lost Canadians, of their automatic right to citizenship.
But the Conservative amendments to the Liberal bill – expected to go to a vote on Monday – would make people aged 18 to 54 clear several hurdles in order to inherit Canadian citizenship, putting them on roughly even ground with immigrants seeking citizenship.
They would have to pass an English or French language test, be subject to security screening to check for criminal activity and pass a citizenship test demonstrating knowledge of Canadian history.
Bill C-3 requires Canadian parents born abroad to demonstrate a substantial connection to Canada before they can pass on citizenship to a child born outside the country. They would need to spend a cumulative 1,095 days – the equivalent of three years – in Canada before the birth or adoption of the child seeking citizenship.
The Conservative changes would require the 1,095 days to be consecutively spent in Canada within five years, and not made up of a few weeks, months or days over many years.
In a debate in the Commons on Friday, Conservative immigration critic Michelle Rempel Garner said her changes were “common-sense amendments to try and ensure that people who are obtaining citizenship by descent would have to go through the same processes as somebody who’s obtained citizenship through naturalization.”
But NDP immigration critic Jenny Kwan said the amendments made at committee would create “a new class of Lost Canadians.” She said Canadians who travel or work abroad and have children there “should not be penalized for it.”
Experts warned that the Conservative amendments could create stateless citizens and mean Canadians granted citizenship at birth by the bill could be stripped of their passports if they do not meet the criteria once they turn 18.
The NDP and Liberal amendments, expected to be voted on next week, aim to restore the text of the original bill.
The government brought in the bill – a carbon copy of one that failed to become law before the election – in response to a 2023 Ontario Superior Court ruling.
A judge found that it is unconstitutional to deny citizenship to children born in another country to Canadians also born outside Canada. The last Liberal government did not appeal the ruling and the court granted the government a series of extensions – until next month – to make changes to the law. The government is applying to the court to extend the deadline further.
Don Chapman, a Lost Canadian who has been campaigning for decades to restore their rights, warned that the Conservative amendments, if not reversed, could make the bill unconstitutional and could lead to a further court challenge.
He also said the changes could mean that children of Canadians born abroad, granted Canadian citizenship at birth, could be stripped of their citizenship and even made stateless at 18 if they fail to pass a language test, a citizenship test or had a criminal conviction as a teenager.
Click link to read the news story - https://www.theglobeandmail.com/politics/article-liberals-ndp-harper-citizenship-lost-canadians/?login=true
NDP MP Jenny Kwan is looking to team up with the governing Liberals to scrap proposed restrictions to birthright citizenship for “lost Canadians.”
The New Democrat recently filed notice for several motions that, if passed, would delete amendments made by the House immigration committee to Bill C-3, also known as the ‘Lost Canadians’ bill, which would restore citizenship to people born in a foreign country to Canadian parents who were also born outside Canada.
Earlier this month, Conservative and Bloc Québécois committee members passed amendments that would require people eligible for birthright citizenship under the proposed law to fulfill residency and security requirements — similar to prospective immigrants.
The changes would force ‘lost Canadians’ to spend at least three cumulative years in Canada over a five-year span and demonstrate an adequate knowledge of either English or French to become eligible for citizenship.
“To say that I was disappointed is an understatement,” said Kwan in an interview with iPolitics. “To me, it is absolutely disgraceful… [so] I’m looking to restore the bill to its original form.”
“What [the Conservatives and Bloc] did conflates the rights of immigrants, who have to earn citizenship, to ‘lost Canadians,’ who actually have a birthright to pass on their citizenship to their children. To conflate those two things, I think it’s sneaky and I think it’s unCanadian.”
Click link to read the news story - https://www.ipolitics.ca/2025/10/22/ndp-mp-hopes-liberals-will-help-reverse-tory-proposed-changes-to-birthright-citizenship/
As Prime Minister Mark Carney attempts a diplomatic reset with China and India, his government has yet to name its candidate to oversee the promised foreign interference registry to address the threat of political meddling and transnational repression.
But as public attention shifts toward economic concerns over human rights, NDP MP Jenny Kwan (Vancouver East, B.C.) says the federal government must “walk and chew gum at the same time,” and remain focused on protecting Canadians caught in the crosshairs of foreign influence.
“The federal government can’t take its eyes off the need to protect Canadians and our democratic institutions,” said Kwan, her party’s public safety and national security critic, in an interview with The Hill Times. Her comments came as Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand (Oakville East, Ont.) wrapped up travel to India and China for talks with government officials.
Click link to read the news story - https://www.hilltimes.com/story/2025/10/22/lack-of-foreign-interference-registry-mystifying-as-canada-attempts-diplomatic-reset-with-primary-culprits-says-ndp-mp-jenny-kwan/477880/
In her letter, Kwan, who is not a member of the committee because the federal NDP lacks official party status, said the incident “raises very serious questions about procedural fairness” and a potential misuse of authority.
Kwan said the announcement raises questions about the “discretion” that can be exercised by a minister or parliamentary secretary when it comes to cases involving performing artists, as well as the criteria the immigration department uses to deny entry to Canada, when no criminal record is present.
She wrote that the incident also touches on issues surrounding how such announcements can be made, as well as “the need to ensure that discretionary decisions respect the Charter of Rights and Freedoms and Canada’s international obligations, particularly regarding freedom of artistic expression.”
“To that end, I respectfully urge the committee to look into this matter,” Kwan wrote.
“Ministerial accountability includes the role of parliamentary secretary. It is critical that Canadians and the international community are reassured due process is safeguarded, so that public trust in the fairness and integrity of our immigration and cultural exchange policies is (reassured,)” her letter read.
Kwan said looking into the matter would also provide clarity to Canadians who bought tickets to see the band play in Toronto and Vancouver.
Click link to read the news story - https://nationalpost.com/news/politics/ndp-mp-calls-for-probe-into-statement-banning-irish-hip-hop-trio-kneecap
MP Jenny Kwan’s Response to Prime Minister Carney’s Statement on Public Safety
The NDP wants a fair and balanced system that ensures public safety, due process and protects the civil liberties of Canadians. The Carney government’s introduction of Bills C-2 and C-12 are deeply flawed attempts to rebrand executive overreach as ‘border reform’ to appease Trump. These bills would strip away due process for refugee claimants, hand sweeping cancellation powers to the minister, and quietly expand surveillance and data-sharing authorities with minimal oversight. Canada should not let Trump shape our future. Canada’s immigration and privacy systems are being rewritten in ways that undermine fairness, transparency, and fundamental rights. While some of the most extreme elements were watered down in C-12, the core problems remain: too much power in the hands of cabinet, too few safeguards for vulnerable people, and virtually no accountability.
The hiring of 1,000 CBSA officers is a re-announcement that is long overdue. In 2012, the Conservative government, with Pierre Poilievre in cabinet, cut 1,100 border officers in one day, leaving Canada more vulnerable to illegal guns and drugs crossing into Canada. The Liberals have been in government for 10 years and they have failed to act.
The Customs Immigration Union (CIU), representing our CBSA officers, estimates that we currently lack as many as 3,000 border officers across the country. This means that border crossings are consistently operating with reduced staff who just do not have the time, means or support to effectively search for illegal firearms, contraband, stolen vehicles and work with asylum seekers.
The shortage of frontline workers has contributed to an escalation of illegal activities. For example, regarding auto theft at the Port of Montreal - the on-site space available for officers to perform expected inspections is severely limited with only eight officers to search the containers intended for exports.
In Vancouver, the elimination of the Port police by the Conservatives has escalated the drug trafficking problem for our communities.
The announcement today is only the first step.
There is an urgent need of increasing the number of frontline CBSA officers by 3000 as stated by the CIU. Furthermore, the Carney government needs to ensure these officers have the proper working tools and facilities to do their jobs and provide new CBSA training centre for new recruits. The NDP is further calling for the Carney government to bring back the Port police in Vancouver.
“No More Loopholes Act,” proposed by NDP Vancouver East MP Jenny Kwan
Kwan’s bill would remove exemptions in Canada’s Export and Import Permits Act to try to ensure Canadian arms aren’t used to commit atrocities in places like Gaza, by transiting through third parties like the United States. “Our government insists that Canada doesn’t export arms to countries accused of war crimes — but that’s only true on paper,” she told the Star. “The reality is that shipments go through the United States without oversight … (and) are being used on civilians that are being bombed, starved, and displaced. This isn’t who Canadians are, and it’s not what we stand for.”
Click link to read the opinion article - https://www.thestar.com/politics/political-opinion/nine-ideas-you-havent-heard-about-from-canadian-politicians/article_d34145a1-b3b1-4dd3-91ba-ba94324dc92e.html
Jenny Kwan, the NDP’s critic on immigration, said in a social media post before the bill was tabled that the “sudden reversal” shows it was flawed from the start.
“Why was the ‘safety’ border bill rushed without consultation or due diligence?” she said. “Public safety legislation should never be driven by Trump or foreign politics. Canadians deserve better.”
The new legislation includes the other elements included in Bill C-2, including restricting access to asylum, increasing authorities’ control over immigration documents, expanding border officers’ ability to inspect exports, giving the Canadian Coast Guard security patrol powers and allowing more information sharing with other levels of government and the United States.
Click link to read the news story - https://www.thestar.com/politics/federal/carney-government-tables-toned-down-version-of-tougher-immigration-law/article_f341b3c5-b107-4127-8cd5-4f1059871643.html
Ms. Kwan signalled that the NDP would not support Bill C-2 without substantial changes.
“Even if the bill is adjusted somewhat, it is still very disturbing that warrantless access provisions remain intact. This allows intelligence agencies, police and other public officials to conduct surveillance operations without proper authorization,” she said in an e-mail. “If those are the only changes, the NDP still cannot support this bill.”
Mr. Anandasangaree told reporters that he would be open to possible amendments to immigration provisions, which remain unchanged in Bill C-12. They restrict the ability to claim asylum and give the immigration minister the power to cancel visa applications en masse.
On Thursday, a coalition of civil-society organizations, including civil liberties, and refugee and migrant-rights groups, called for the withdrawal of both bills.
“Bill C-12 does not fix Bill C-2; it fast-tracks some of the most-egregious aspects, while still moving forward with the rest,” Tim McSorley, national co-ordinator of the International Civil Liberties Monitoring Group, said in a statement.