Overreliance on apps at border instead of human interviews a risk to national security

Canada’s border security is at risk, according to a union president who warns that the federal agency is dangerously understaffed, relying too heavily on phone apps over human interviews.

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Canada’s border security is at risk, according to a union president who warns that the federal agency is dangerously understaffed, relying too heavily on phone apps over human interviews, and prioritizing “facilitation” over keeping the country safe.

Mark Weber, national president of the Customs and Immigration Union, testified during a House of Commons’ immigration committee meeting studying the Liberals’ Bill C-12, known as “the Strong Borders Act.” Weber stated that the measures in the new bill would be ineffective unless the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA)’s budget and staffing issues were resolved.

Weber said certain aspects of the bill were positive, including addressing the CBSA’s current lack of access to import and export facilities. He noted that the agency currently cannot conduct inspections on “certain modes” of export and import, such as rail, due to a “now well-established lack” of staff and facilities.

Weber acknowledged that Bill C-12 aims to speed up the refugee claim process and reduce what the government calls “lengthy processing times and backlogs.” However, he argued that the issue would be “far less considerable” if the agency’s “sustained understaffing” were addressed.

During his testimony, Weber highlighted that the CBSA lacks the staff to conduct what he outlined as critical in-person interviews with individuals attempting to cross into Canada. He added that the agency now relies on a phone app called “One Touch” to process refugee claims.

“One touch means claimants spend significantly less time, meaningfully interacting with officers, with the result of reduced security for the sake of expediency,” Weber said. “Interactions between officers and anyone who seeks to enter the country, be they travellers or refugee claimants, are a key component of border security.”

While being questioned by Conservative MP Brad Redekopp, Weber called the “One Touch app” “a terrible thing.” He said it replaced critical security screening done by human agents and that the CBSA was now prioritizing serving migrants and refugees while putting border security on the back burner.

“So essentially, we get tombstone data, we do some biometrics, and the claimant is then allowed into the country to complete their security screening and such on their own through the One Touch system they have,” Weber said. “I believe it’s 45 days to submit that. Meaning, in essence, to speed things up, because we are short-staffed, we’re allowing people into the country without first doing that security screening.”