Parliamentary Committee Notes: Funding to continue activities in support of Canada’s Migrant Smuggling Prevention Strategy
Proposed Response
- The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP)’s mandate is to protect Canada, its people, and its interests against the greatest domestic and international criminal threats.
- The RCMP received funding from Budget 2024 to continue implementing activities that contribute to Canada’s Migrant Smuggling Prevention Strategy.
- This Strategy was established in 2010, and is a whole-of-government approach led by Global Affairs Canada that aims to identify and disrupt mass migrant smuggling ventures before they launch.
Financial Implications
- The RCMP is accessing $7.6 million ($6.6 million in voted authorities and $1.0 million in statutory authorities) to continue implementing activities that contribute to Canada’s Migrant Smuggling Prevention Strategy.
- The RCMP will utilize this funding to support the continued operations of Project Seahorse until fiscal year 2026-27.
If pressed on the specific law enforcement role of Project Seahorse:
- The RCMP takes a layered approach to border security, working to prevent, detect and disrupt the greatest threats using all of the resources – including technology and intelligence – at its disposal. The RCMP works closely with domestic and international partners to gather and share information for the detection and investigation of organized crime groups and networks that are involved in, among other illegal activities, migrant smuggling.
- The RCMP’s contribution to the Migrant Smuggling Prevention Strategy is Project Seahorse. This Program is comprised of a coordination capability and dedicated RCMP Liaison Officers and intelligence analysts posted overseas.
Background
Budget 2024 announced the renewal of policy authorities for Canada’s Migrant Smuggling Prevention Strategy for three (3) years and allocated $23, million starting in fiscal year 2024-25, to the RCMP to “maintain activities to detect, deter and disrupt migrant smuggling ventures targeting Canada.”
Migrant Smuggling Prevention Strategy
The Migrant Smuggling Prevention Strategy is a whole-of-government strategy that aims to prevent and disrupt the migrant smuggling operations that target Canada and the organized criminal smuggling networks behind them. The Strategy is coordinated by Global Affairs Canada (GAC) and seeks to combine efforts from law enforcement, intelligence, border management and enforcement, voluntary return assistance, anti-crime capacity-building and diplomatic engagement. It includes anti-crime programming funding to help build capacity in origin and transit countries to detect and prevent or disrupt migrant smuggling networks and their operations.
The RCMP’s contribution to the Migrant Smuggling Prevention Strategy is Project Seahorse. This Program is comprised of a coordination capability and dedicated RCMP Liaison Officers and intelligence analysts posted overseas.
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