An RCMP officer looks over the border between Quebec and New York state on Roxham Road in Saint-Bernard-de-Lacolle, Que., in January. There were nearly 11,000 new asylum claims in April, mostly in Quebec and Ontario.Christinne Muschi/The Canadian Press

Michael Barutciski is a professor at York University’s Glendon School of Public and International Affairs, as well as a senior fellow at the Macdonald-Laurier Institute.

The first substantive legislative initiative from Mark Carney’s government, Bill C-2, has passed through first reading in the House of Commons.

Its short title, the Strong Borders Act, makes explicit the public messaging that underlies the sweeping and multifaceted legislative amendments being proposed. While the bill provides law enforcement with various powers regarding issues such as fentanyl and financial crime, it also addresses immigration-related irritants with the U.S.

Concerns have been raised that it includes measures which would restrict asylum claims. But the lax practices of recent years may have left Canadians unaware of the fundamental dilemmas concerning the country’s asylum situation, and of the reality that changes to the system were........

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