“We say we're keeping Canadians safe. We say that IRGC members aren't allowed in Canada. If they get in, we say we'll remove them quickly. I'm saying words to make us sound good. I'm not giving any new information about that terrorist at the border.”
What they said. What they meant.
Plain-language translations from the House of Commons.
Recent debates
8 latest topics
Spring Economic Update 2026 Implementation Act
57 statements
Spring Economic Update 2026 Implementation Act
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Arab Heritage Month Act
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The Economy
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Housing
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Oral Questions
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship
A sweeping bill giving the government and security agencies more power, including: requiring other departments to give free facilities to border agents; letting Health Canada speed up drug bans; exempting cops from drug laws while investigating; expanding coast guard spying powers; letting the Immigration Minister share immigrants' private info with other government agencies; letting Cabinet block, suspend, or restrict immigration processing whenever it decides it's in the "public interest" and letting it suspend or impose new conditions on immigration documents; letting Cabinet cancel, suspend, or vary immigration documents whenever it decides it's in the "public interest"; expanding money laundering penalties and forcing more businesses to register with the Centre; making more people ineligible for refugee protections; and expanding sex offender tracking by border agents. After an Iranian terrorist almost got into Canada, the Conservatives pressed the Immigration Minister on dropping the ball. The Minister mostly talked about existing rules but eventually just listed various small measures the government is taking to crack down on immigration.
“I'm saying everything is fine. No terrorists got in. Canadians are safe. The government is doing a good job keeping terrorists out. You don't need to worry about the terrorist we maybe let in.”
“I'm filling time with kind words and saying nothing anyone could pin down later. Everything is fine. I'm doing a great job.”
“I need more time. Let me list how hard I'm working. Everything is getting better. We're kicking people out. I brought a bill with more security. We're tracking who leaves. I'm fixing this.”
“I want to look good by saying applications and arrivals are down a lot from 2024 to 2026. It doesn't matter if that's not the real issue.”