Open Letter to the Immigration Minister on Kneecap
Open Letter to the Immigration Minister on Kneecap
November 28, 2025
The Honourable Lena Metlege Diab
Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship
House of Commons
Ottawa, ON K1A 0A6
Via email: [email protected]
Dear Minister Diab,
Open letter re: Kneecap
I am writing to follow up on my letter to you dated October 2nd regarding the admissibility of Kneecap, the Irish musical group to Canada. I note that it has been two months since I have written, I have yet to receive your response to this critical matter.
Meanwhile, in response to an Order Paper Question, IRCC confirmed that admissibility decisions are made exclusively by designated officers—not by elected officials—and CBSA has stated that it was not consulted or involved in the decision by Parliamentary Secretary Gasparro to go public.
With respect to Mr. Liam Og Hanna's application, his eTA was cancelled for "omitting to disclose complete and accurate information on his application". The Order Paper Question response indicated that "[t]he applicant was notified of the reasons for this decision"; however, his legal counsel advised that the letter he received did not specify the reasons.
Could you please advise what omissions did Mr. Liam Og Hanna allegedly make in his eTA application that rendered his application “cancelled for admissibility”? Could you also provide the reasons for the cancellation of his eTA application?
Under Rule 9 of the Federal Courts Rules, the Minister must provide complete reasons for a decision. In response to the Rule 9 request, members of Kneecap received the same refusal letter, supplemented only by a single GCMS note stating that “[b]y not providing the requested documents, there are reasonable grounds to believe that the client’s required eTA information may not be genuine.” The note does not identify which “requested documents” were allegedly missing or explain how their absence rendered the eTA information “not genuine.” Liam Og Hanna never received any request for additional documents. In short, no information has been provided on what exactly was said to be omitted or “not genuine.”
With respect to the other two band members, they were simply advised not to travel because their applications remained under review with no timeline on when a decision would be made, nor was additional information requested for the application to complete the processing.
Mr. James John O Dochartaigh and Mr. Naoise O Caireallain both held valid eTAs but later received letters raising unspecified concerns about potential misrepresentation and requesting further documents. This effectively reopened their eTA applications and rendered the eTAs unusable for travel, though they were not formally refused. Both have now provided the requested documents and are awaiting a decision.
What is the estimated time for that process to be completed or will these applications remain undecided indefinitely to avoid having to make a decision that is politically sensitive as it may contradict the statement made by Parliamentary Secretary Vince Gasparro? The applications have been under review for two months now, but to date, no request for additional information have been made to the applicants. Could you please advise if there is any additional information needed to help with the decision-making process.
Your urgent attention to this matter is required and I look forward to your response.
Sincerely,
Jenny Kwan
Member of Parliament for Vancouver East
NDP Critic for Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship
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The rally is organized by the Hong Kong Pathway Alliance. Similar events are also taking place in Calgary and Toronto.
The pathway allows eligible Hong Kong residents in Canada, including people who studied or worked here, to apply for PR.
People here say they have waited for years and still do not know when their applications will be finished.
“Right now I’m stuck in limbo. It’s been a year and a half. I haven’t heard back from the IRCC regarding my application, and we’re continuously arguing with, we’re continuously hoping that IRCC sees our cases,” said Vikrambir Singh, another demonstrator.
“There’s not just me, there’s 40,000 plus applications that are stuck in limbo, and we don’t know when they’re going to get processed.”
They also point to Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada’s (IRCC) processing time tool, which now suggests new applicants could wait more than 10 years for their PR.
The Immigration Minister recently told Parliament that there have been more than 46,000 applications under the Hong Kong PR pathways, and just over 13,000 had arrived.
“And the minister’s solution is, “don’t apply under the lifeboat scheme”. What is she even talking about? That scheme was specifically designed for Hong Kongers, said MP Jenny Kwan, representing Vancouver East for the NDP.
“So, it is absolutely outrageous that she would renege on the government’s promise in suggesting that the Hong Kongers should apply under a different stream. It is absolutely unacceptable.”
The federal government introduced special measures for Hong Kong residents in 2020, after China imposed the national security law in Hong Kong.
*Click image or link to read or watch the TV news story - https://vancouver.citynews.ca/2026/06/07/demonstrators-rally-hong-kong-pr-processing-backlog/
OTTAWA—The Canadian government is considering the use of artificial intelligence to save time creating influential assessment profile reports of offenders as they go to federal prisons, and is running a small-scale trial to test it, the Star has learned.
Carney government releases AI road map that aims to make Canada a leader
Federal Politics
Carney government releases AI road map that aims to make Canada a leader
Mentioned in lengthy documents tabled in Parliament last month and confirmed by Correctional Service Canada (CSC), the test run comes as the Carney government tries to ramp up AI adoption, including with billions in a national strategy released this week.
But the prison trial, which CSC says has not yet been used in real cases, is raising concerns from AI experts, criminal defence lawyers and the federal NDP’s public safety critic, who argue a widespread adoption could lead to crucial errors, exacerbate racial biases and put offenders and victims at risk.
Criminal profile reports, as they are called, are detailed “foundational documents” prepared by CSC staff during a prisoner’s intake process that identify risks and play a role in major decisions like access to programs and likelihood of parole.
Drawing from scores of official documents, they include details about an offender’s criminal history, the circumstances of their crimes, patterns of violence or behavioural, mental health and addiction issues, family and social background, trauma history, education and employment records, and even victim impact statements.
“This is what defines your offence cycle,” criminal defence lawyer Nora Demnati said of those reports. “It will have an impact on everything else that comes.”
That’s why the Carney government should slow down and consult widely, including with the CSC union, its lawyers and the Privacy Commissioner of Canada before going further, said NDP MP Jenny Kwan, the party’s public safety critic. Neither the Union of Safety and Justice Employees or the Office of the Privacy Commissioner have been consulted yet, they told the Star.
Kwan warned of a multitude of legal concerns that go both ways and can have a “cascading impact”: Violating the rights of inmates if mistakes are added to reports, on one hand, or hurting victims and prison staff if crucial information is missed by the AI summaries, on the other.
“When you have those kinds of risks associated with correctional policing matters, you can imagine what the huge ramifications might be,” Kwan told the Star. “You could potentially compromise people’s legal rights.”