CBSA launches consultations on a new Fairness Initiative
TORONTO,
July 11 /CNW Telbec/ - The Honourable Anne McLellan, Deputy
Prime Minister and Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness
and
Minister responsible for the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA),
announced
today the launch of a consultation process on a new Fairness Initiative to
ensure that Canadians and visitors to Canada are treated fairly and can
expect
to receive the best possible service when crossing the border and in all
other
dealings with the CBSA.
This Initiative includes a series of proposed
commitments on how people
should expect to be treated by the CBSA. The CBSA will start consulting
immediately with clients and stakeholders, including members of the Cross-
Cultural Roundtable on Security and ethno-cultural communities, in order
to
obtain their feedback. These consultations will be conducted across the
country until the fall. The CBSA wants to ensure its clients' views and
perceptions are taken into consideration in the development of a
comprehensive, unbiased and transparent Fairness Initiative.
The CBSA's commitment to fairness is based on six
pillars: respect and
courtesy, fair application of the law, privacy and confidentiality,
bilingual
service, accurate information about entitlements and obligations, and
review
of our actions or decisions.
"Everyone should expect to be treated fairly by
the CBSA," said Minister
McLellan. "By implementing this Initiative, the CBSA will be
strengthening its
accountability to all Canadians and visitors at the border. CBSA Officers
are
the first point of contact at the border and we want to ensure that people
entering Canada are treated fairly," added Minister McLellan.
The CBSA was created on December 12, 2003. As a new
organization, the
CBSA needs to put in place a Fairness Initiative that reflects our new
roles
and responsibilities. The CBSA will use the results of the consultation
process to develop its Fairness Initiative and the mechanisms that will be
implemented to ensure transparency.
At the same time, the CBSA is working on improving its
complaint and
compliment mechanisms to provide a system that is more accessible and
accountable. The CBSA will develop tools to make it easier for clients to
contact the CBSA should they have any comments.
Until the Fairness Initiative is fully implemented, the
CBSA encourages
clients to provide feedback on how they were treated at the border, or in
any
other dealing with the CBSA, by speaking with a manager on-site or by
contacting the local CBSA office at a later date.
"I want to thank the Honourable Roy Cullen,
Parliamentary Secretary and
Member of Parliament for Etobicoke North, for his longstanding commitment
to
this initiative. I also wish to thank him for agreeing to be engaged in
the
consultation process," said Deputy Prime Minister McLellan.
"The Fairness Initiative is a testament to a
commitment within the public
safety portfolio to strengthen our relationship with Canadians,"
added Deputy
Prime Minister McLellan. "We are determined that Canada's approach to
safety
and security reflect Canadian values of fairness and respect, and that it
be
sensitive to both the needs of Canadians and the diversity of our
society."
The Fairness Initiative is one of a series of measures
that have been
undertaken within the Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness Canada
portfolio to engage Canadians in the on-going development of a balanced
approach to safety and security (see Fact Sheet). From the launch of the
department of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness in December 2003,
and
the subsequent announcement of Canada's National Security Policy in the
spring
of 2004, the Government has been emphatic in its resolve to enlist the
help
and support of all Canadians to ensure that our approach to national
security
and public safety remains effective.
