Quebec doesn't seem serious about discussing asylum seeker costs: Ottawa
![Marc Miller Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Marc Miller speaks to the media during the federal cabinet retreat in Montreal, Monday, Jan. 22, 2024. (Christinne Muschi/The Canadian Press)](/content/dam/ctvnews/en/images/2024/2/27/marc-miller-1-6786169-1709071421009.jpg)
Federal Immigration Minister Marc Miller says he doesn't think Quebec wants to have serious discussions about the costs and social consequences of the influx of asylum seekers.
Miller told reporters in Ottawa today that Quebec provincial politicians seem to prefer to negotiate in public, which he says isn't the way "responsible governments" behave.
His comments come in reaction to Quebec's demand last week that the federal government transfer $1 billion to the province to cover the past three years of costs related to settling would-be refugees.
Four provincial ministers held a news conference calling on Ottawa to stop the arrival of asylum seekers in Quebec, saying it receives 55 per cent of all would-be refugees in Canada.
Miller says the $1-billion figure the ministers "threw out there" at the news conference was double what the province had previously been seeking from the federal government.
In response, Quebec Immigration Minister Christine Fréchette said today that Miller is "completely rejecting reality."
She says Quebec has been trying for months — in person, by phone and in writing — to have discussions with Ottawa on the issue.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 27, 2024.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
![](https://www.ctvnews.ca/polopoly_fs/1.6938147.1719198265!/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/landscape_800/image.jpg)
Stanley Cup stage set for McDavid, Oilers in final game of roller-coaster season
Connor McDavid and the Edmonton Oilers face the Florida Panthers in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup final Monday - the last hurdle in an improbable journey this season.
Princess Anne sustains injuries and concussion in an 'incident,' Buckingham Palace says
Princess Anne sustained minor injuries and a concussion following an incident on an estate in southwest England, the Buckingham Palace said Monday.
This U.S. company is selling products with human fecal matter to Canadians. What does Health Canada think about it?
The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued a warning letter to a company appearing to sell products containing human fecal matter without approval from the agency.
This is what an 'incredibly difficult' heat wave was like inside one of Canada's densest neighbourhoods
This is what it was like in a Toronto neighbourhood where 30,000 people live during a scorching heat wave.
Lifeguard and 'Pirates of the Caribbean' actor dies after apparent shark attack in Hawaii
A lifeguard and surf instructor – who also appeared in movies including 'Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides' and 'Blue Crush' - died Sunday following an apparent shark attack on the North Shore of Ohau, Hawaii, according to officials.
At least 16 dead in a fire at a lithium battery factory in South Korea
A fire at a lithium battery manufacturing factory near South Korea's capital on Monday left at least 16 people dead, seven injured and six missing, officials said.
Is Trump shielded from criminal charges as an ex-president? A nation awaits word from U.S. Supreme Court
In the coming days, the U.S. Supreme Court will confront a perfect storm mostly of its own making: a trio of decisions stemming directly from the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol.
Researchers have found a 'clear genetic trigger for obesity' that applies to some people
Experts have long known there is a genetic component to obesity, and a new study identified one particular gene that may be behind it.
A year ago, her engagement ring vanished at a hospital. She still cherishes the man who gave it to her
When Faye Bauman went to a Florida hospital for surgery last year, she handed her diamond engagement ring to a nurse — and never saw it again. The ring carries profound memories of her late husband and the moment he proposed to her 57 years ago.