QUESTION PERIOD — Indigenous and Northern Affairs
Status Application Process
February 27, 2020
Honourable senators, my question is to the Government Representative in the Senate.
Senator Gold, it has recently come to my attention that in Manitoba, there is a separate processing unit responsible for filing all applications for status under Bill S-3, meaning applications under Bill S-3 are actually not being processed as “normal” applications at the Winnipeg registry office. This processing unit is not at all open to the public, whether it be in person, by phone or email. It remains unclear how or if staff at their Winnipeg registry office have been trained to help applicants under Bill S-3.
What steps are being taken by the government to ensure that applicants under Bill S-3, particularly those who are ill or elderly, are getting the necessary information and support to successfully complete their applications and have them processed in a timely and efficient manner?
Thank you very much for your question. I will be brief on the answer because the situation that you raise is one of which I was not aware, and therefore I cannot answer and wouldn’t presume to offer an answer.
If you would permit me a comment, as I have said in this chamber before, I want to be useful to senators and to provide information in a timely fashion. We all understand that some questions are more important to be asked than to be answered in this chamber. For those of you who want answers, I invite you to advise me as soon as you know of the question so that I might have an opportunity to seek the answer. Regrettably, as those of you with more experience know, delayed answers are really delayed answers because they have to go through a rather complicated system before — I wish wholeheartedly to improve upon that record, but that is out of my control.
What is in my control is that with enough notice — if one wants the answer — I may be able to expedite that and break through some of the bureaucracy. Thank you for the question. I’ll try to find out, but please be patient for the answer.
