Prime Minister Carney says he still has confidence in public safety minister

Prime Minister Mark Carney stood by his public safety minister on Wednesday, saying Gary Anandasangaree had been open about his support for the immigration of a suspected terrorist group member.

“The public safety minister has been transparent about the details of that situation and he has my confidence,” Carney said after announcing measures to protect Canada’s steel industry.

On Tuesday, Global News reported that before joining cabinet, the Toronto-area MP asked Canadian officials to approve the permanent residence application of a man they had deemed a Tamil Tigers member.

The Tamil Tigers, or Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, fought a lengthy failed independence war in Sri Lanka and have been on Canada’s list of designated terrorist entities since 2006.

Although the Canada Border Services Agency had rejected the man as an immigrant on the grounds he was a member of the group, Anandasangaree asked them to reverse their decision.

In 2016 and 2023, Anandasangaree wrote letters to the CBSA endorsing the man’s bid to move to Toronto. The most recent letter was when the MP was parliamentary secretary of justice.

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Last Wednesday, the Federal Court rejected the man’s latest appeal, saying that despite the MP’s letter of support, the CBSA had correctly prioritized national security and public safety.

In a statement, Anandasangaree said he could not comment on a case before the courts but defended his actions, saying he had stopped writing letters of support when he joined cabinet in 2023.

He said that MPs “from all parties provide letters of support for constituents as a routine matter.” But an organization founded by victims of terrorism said it wasn’t satisfied with that explanation.

“We know it’s very common for an MP’s office to advocate with government departments on behalf of their constituents. And that’s okay, bureaucracies can sometimes make mistakes,” said lawyer Sheryl Saperia, CEO of Secure Canada.

“It’s important that Canadians feel that they can lean on their MPs when necessary. And when appropriate, advocating on an immigration matter is a perfectly acceptable function for an MP.”

“But, no MP’s office should intervene on behalf of someone the CBSA has found to be a member and on the payroll of a terror group, period. And subsequent appeals by that person have been rejected in court. Those facts alone should raise alarm bells for an MP.”

Saperia said Anandasangaree’s letters “cited the emotional impact of this individual being separated from his family in Canada. And we would argue that this is a ridiculous argument when we’re talking about someone who was involved in some capacity as a member of a terrorist group.”

She said the government needed to give Canadians the sense that their safety and security was paramount. “And I think many Canadians are not feeling that confidence right now, and this particular case certainly does not make things any better.”

A former Canadian Security Intelligence Service analyst said officials did not make decisions like the one challenged by Anandasangaree lightly, and based their recommendations on a person’s background and credibility, while weighing potential threats to public safety and national security.

“And here this individual says, ‘Well, I don’t like your decision, and I want you to reverse it.’ I mean, it speaks to an arrogance at a minimum, but it also speaks to this person’s complete lack of understanding when it comes to national security,” Phil Gurski said.

“It boggles the mind why the minister would think this was an okay thing to do.”

Gurski called it an “egregious error on his part, a lack of judgment at a minimum.” “He should resign his post immediately and let someone else who can actually do the job fill the bill.”

Carney appointed Anandasangaree the minister in charge of Canada’s national security and border safety agencies on May 13,

To avert a White House trade war, Anandasangaree is responsible for convincing U.S. President Donald Trump that Canada has toughened its border against drug and migrant smuggling.

But questions were raised last month when Anandasangaree recused himself from decisions related to the Tamil Tigers and its Canadian front group the World Tamil Movement.

In a post on social media platform X, Leo Housakos, the Opposition Senate leader, wrote that penning letters like Anandasangaree’s “should disqualify anyone from ever serving as minister of public safety.”

Stewart.Bell@globalnews.ca