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Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship

During question period on immigration, a Conservative member said Canadians paid over $275 million in health care costs for rejected refugee claimants over ten years, and argued rejected claimants should not receive care that many Canadians without a family doctor cannot get; he asked the Prime Minister to stop scams and acknowledge a loss of control over immigration. The Liberal minister responded that asylum claims have fallen by two-thirds compared to last year, that the program represents 0.2% of total health spending, and that Bill C-12 will help reduce asylum volumes further; she also said the opposition should correct its facts about vulnerable people. No other topics dominated the exchange.Written by AI from the debate. Updated .

Official text

4 statements

Burton Bailey

Conservative
“Canadians spent over $275 million on health care for rejected refugee claimants over the last 10 years. These claimants get services that many Canadians do not get. I want the Prime Minister to stop people who scam the system from using our health care.”
Official Hansard

Mr. Speaker, yesterday it was revealed that Canadians paid over $275 million on health care for 130,000 rejected refugee claimants in the past 10 years. When bogus refugees and scammers are benefiting from a health care system they do not pay into and are receiving additional care that Canadians do not, such as vision care, counselling, home care and physiotherapy, something is wrong. When will the Prime Minister put Canadians first and stop scammers from taking advantage of our system?

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Lena Metlege Diab

Liberal
“Health care costs for asylum seekers depend on how many arrive. Asylum claims have dropped by two-thirds compared to last year. This bill will help lower those numbers even more.”

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Official Hansard

Mr. Speaker, the cost of health care for an asylum claimant is tied to volumes. The good news is that the asylum claims have gone down. If we compare the first two months of this year to 2024, it has gone down by two-thirds. That is good news for Canada, and with Bill C-12, we will continue to reduce those claims.

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Burton Bailey

Conservative

Linked statement

“Six million Canadians cannot get a family doctor. People whose refugee claims were rejected should not stay here or get better health care than Canadians. I want the Prime Minister to admit he lost control of immigration and fix this.”
Official Hansard

Mr. Speaker, six million Canadians without access to a family doctor will not be lectured by the Liberals while their own tax dollars are being abused and they cannot get the proper care they need. The fact is that non-citizens whose asylum claims have been rejected have no reason to be in this country and should not benefit from better health care than Canadians. When will the Prime Minister admit he has lost control of immigration and stop letting scammers treat Canada as a walk-in clinic?

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Lena Metlege Diab

Liberal
“This program costs only 0.2 percent of Canada's total health spending. The Conservatives need to get their facts right and stop scaring people about vulnerable people who need our help. We will keep protecting everyone in Canada.”
Official Hansard

Mr. Speaker, the program the member is speaking about represents 0.2% of the total health spending for Canada. I think the Conservatives had better get their facts straight and stop fearmongering off of the backs of people who are vulnerable and need to be protected. We will continue to do what is right for Canadians to protect Canadians and everyone in Canada.

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