Ottawa - Today, the Honourable David J. McGuinty, Minister of Public Safety, and the Honourable Marc Miller, Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, provided key updates on the impacts of recent measures to reinforce the integrity of our shared border with the United-States (U.S.) and our immigration system. These ongoing efforts include Canada's Border Plan, released in December 2024.
Together, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC), Public Safety, the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), have taken concrete steps to minimize unnecessary border volumes, increase info-sharing, and reduce non-genuine visitors and illegal crossings at the border. These measures are already delivering results. The accompanying backgrounder outlines IRCC's measures and key results, and provides an overview of actions taken to protect the border and prevent fraud.
Public Safety is coordinating the $1.3-billion effort to further strengthen the border, and disrupt illegal cross-border activity. In the coming weeks, the Government of Canada will further enhance real-time surveillance of Canada's border and increase presence to support communities. We have already deployed 60 new drones along our border with the U.S., and will be deploying additional surveillance towers and purchasing new technology, such as x-rays, mobile x-rays and hand-held chemical analyzers.
Canada's law enforcement agencies - the RCMP and the CBSA - are working together to ensure they have the officers they need in case there is a surge in the number of asylum seekers coming into Canada. Last year, the CBSA removed over 16,000 individuals from Canada. As committed to under the Border Plan, the CBSA is investing additional resources to further increase removals by another 25 percent this year. The Government of Canada has conducted joint planning sessions with all provinces and territories so that all orders of government work together to bolster border security.
Public Safety is also leading the establishment of a Joint Intelligence Group, which will expand the RCMP and the Communications Security Establishment's intelligence collection capacity, enabling these agencies to target transnational organized crime and fentanyl trafficking more effectively. Finally, the RCMP will pull together resources from law enforcement and the financial sector and leverage existing activities, enhancing cooperation and information sharing on sophisticated money laundering schemes.
Since announcing the Border Plan, the Government of Canada has moved forward on a number of initiatives that will enhance security at the border. Securing the Canada-U.S. Border: Actions and Outcomes to Date demonstrates this progress.
