National

Quebec ready to deploy 300 officers at border if illegal crossings into U.S. rise

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 14 Jan, 2025 10:50 AM

The Quebec government says it is worried about migrants crossing illegally into the United States from Canada, and is calling on the RCMP to deploy the necessary resources at the border.

François Bonnardel, Quebec's public security minister, made the comments today in the provincial capital, one week before the inauguration of Donald Trump as U.S. president.

For weeks, Trump has threatened to impose tariffs on Canada's exports if the federal government doesn't improve border security.

Bonnardel says the area of concern is the Swanton sector, which covers the border region touching parts of Quebec, Ontario and U.S. states including Vermont and New York.

He says of the 26,000 illegal crossings from Canada into the United States reported in 2024, 19,000 were in the Swanton region.

Bonnardel says there are currently 800 federal and provincial officers operating in the Swanton sector, adding that Quebec is ready to deploy 300 additional provincial police officers within 48 hours if there's a marked rise in illegal crossings.

Prev Next

MORE National ARTICLES

Quebec sending more water bombers to California after aircraft struck by drone

Quebec said Friday it will send two more firefighting aircraft to California, a day after one of the province’s water bombers collided with a drone while battling the wildfires ravaging the Los Angeles area. The extra bombers will arrive following an incident that grounded one of the two planes from Quebec that had been assisting in California's wildfire fight.

Quebec sending more water bombers to California after aircraft struck by drone

Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly off to Washington next week to talk tariffs

Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly heads to Washington next week to press the incoming Trump administration not to impose damaging tariffs on Canada. President-elect Donald Trump has threatened to impose 25 per cent across-the-board tariffs on imports from Canada and Mexico when he is inaugurated later this month.

Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly off to Washington next week to talk tariffs

Flu driving spike in respiratory illness in B.C., but COVID-19 numbers low

New data shared by British Columbia's Centre for Disease Control shows the province has one of the worst flu rates in Canada, as a holiday-season spike in respiratory illnesses continues. But the data also shows the province has one of the lowest COVID-19 test positivity rates in the country, at about half the national rate.

Flu driving spike in respiratory illness in B.C., but COVID-19 numbers low

Trudeau says Trump is trying to distract from cost of tariffs with 51st state remarks

Trudeau made the comments in an interview on CNN late Thursday while in Washington, where he attended the funeral for the late U.S. president Jimmy Carter. He did not meet with Trump during his trip south of the border.

Trudeau says Trump is trying to distract from cost of tariffs with 51st state remarks

'Incalculably small' amount of diesel visible at site of 8,000-litre B.C. spill

Aerial surveillance over an area where thousands of litres of diesel was spilled last month off Vancouver Island shows most of the fuel is no longer visible on the water. An update from officials managing the spill says a flight over Lutes Creek near Zeballos, B.C., spotted "an incalculably small" volume of sheen in proximity to the fish farm where up to 8,000 litres spilled into the water on Dec. 14.

'Incalculably small' amount of diesel visible at site of 8,000-litre B.C. spill

B.C. teen with avian flu discharged after weeks in hospital

BC Children’s Hospital says a 13-year-old girl with avian flu was discharged Tuesday after weeks in hospital. The patient was taken to a pediatric intensive care unit with respiratory failure and pneumonia on Nov. 8 and health officials said she tested positive for H5N1 a day later.