Whether Donald Trump becomes the next U.S. president or not, if he wants to come to Canada, he’ll be treated like every other visitor.
On Friday, the federal government responded to an e-petition by New Westminster resident David Black, which called on Canada to ban Trump from entering the country until he apologizes for his call to ban all Muslims from entering the United States.
The response from the Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship stated: “Should Mr. Trump wish to visit Canada, he, like any other visitor, would be examined to determine whether he would be authorized to enter the country.”
The official reply went on to note all visitors to Canada are assessed against the same criteria, regardless of their country of origin.
“Several things can make a foreign national inadmissible under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act, including: having a criminal conviction, involvement in organized crime, violating human or international rights, or engaging in acts such as espionage or terrorism,” the response read. “A foreign national can also be inadmissible for health or financial reasons, or due to an inadmissible family member.”
The e-petition was sponsored by Burnaby South MP Kennedy Stewart last fall and garnered more than 2,406 signatures. It was presented in the House of Commons on Sept. 21. The bulk of the signatures, 889, came from B.C.
The response also comes just four days before Americans go to the polls to elect a new president.
The federal government started the e-petition program last fall.
Under the old rules, people had to collect a minimum of 25 signatures on paper and find an MP to table the petition in the House of Commons. Now, if there are 500 signatures, the government has 45 days to respond in writing.
