NDP calls for border agent training center in Windsor

Several New Democratic MPs gathered Sunday in Windsor, Ontario — home to some of Canada’s busiest border crossings — to call on the federal government to add more border agents on the ground.

These demands include the creation of a new Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) training center in Windsor.

Currently, at the Canada Border Services Agency College in Rigaud, Quebec, we simply do not have the capacity to train the staff and border agents we need across the countrysaid Peter Julian, MP for New Westminster—Burnaby.

Therefore, establishing a training center here in Windsor makes a lot of sense.

Windsor West MP Brian Masse, who organized the press conference near the Ambassador Bridge border crossing with Detroit, estimated that border services were short 2,000 to 3,000 agents.

The government has not responded adequately and this must changehe declared.

The two elected officials were accompanied by their New Democrat colleagues Lindsay Mathyssen, MP for London—Fanshawe, and Heather McPherson, MP for Edmonton—Strathcona, as well as representatives of the Customs and Immigration Union, which represents the agents of theASFC.

Future U.S. President Donald Trump, who will be sworn in on Monday, has complained that Canada is not doing enough to curb illegal immigration and the trafficking of fentanyl into the United States. He threatened to impose a 25% tariff on Canadian imports, a threat that will not be implemented on Monday, according to American media.

In the wake of these threats, Canada announced a $1.3 billion border security plan, including increased border surveillance and other measures.

We have already deployed 60 new drones along our border with the United States and will install additional surveillance towers and purchase new technologies, such as X-ray machines, mobile X-rays and portable chemical analyzersthe federal government said last week in a press release.

Drones and technology are not enough, says NDP

Lindsay Mathyssen, also the NDP’s national defense critic, said that living in a community along Highway 401, a vital manufacturing corridor, she understands the importance of a secure border and an agency with sufficient resources.

We have also seen the negative effects that this transport axis can have in terms of human trafficking, arms and drug trafficking.she explained.

Although she welcomes the government’s $1.3 billion effort to address these threats, the elected official stressed that front-line officers of theASFC had not been consulted.

Certainly, drones can be a significant tool in intercepting crimes, but it is our front-line officers who do most of the work, whether they are law enforcement officersASFCof the GRC or local police forcesshe added.

Mathyssen wants the agents of theASFC regain the capacity to intervene and patrol between border posts, by repealing the 1932 order in council which had removed this responsibility from them.

Allowing our members to patrol between border crossings is a good startaccording to the union.

Alissa Howe, president of Immigration and Customs Union Local 18, stressed that more investment in people, rather than technology, is needed.

I have seen technology fail time and time again over the years. Agents detect goods, contraband and people, not machinesshe explained.

Although the workforce of theASFC have increased in Windsor, this remains insufficient, according to her.

Incredible as it may seem, effective management of border crossings remains a challenge. Even with these numbers, there is always overtimeshe added.

The problem may even get worse, according to her, with the planned opening of the Gordie Howe International Bridge in the fall of 2025.

Alex Hoffman, vice president of the union, expressed similar concerns, noting that border agents often work beyond their limits. This is not sustainable in the long term and people are burning outat-il having you.

In conclusion, the union and New Democratic MPs are calling for immediate measures to resolve these problems and strengthen the human resources of border services.

With information from Pratyush Dayal