The federal government is in the market for winterized trailers to install at the Canada-U.S border in Quebec – a signal Ottawa is not expecting the wave of asylum-seekers jumping the border there to ease anytime soon.
The government this week issued a call for companies interested in supplying and installing units capable of accommodating 200 people to add their names to a list. When, and if, Ottawa decides to pull the trigger, the department in charge of procurement can draw on the list.
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The federal government has repeatedly assured Canadians it has everything under control at the Canada-U.S. border, where thousands of would-be refugees are crossing over in droves, particularly in Quebec.
The RCMP intercepted close to 3,000 people jumping the Canada-U.S. border into Quebec in July – a 284 per cent increase compared to one month earlier, and a more than 1,000 per cent increase than in January, according to Citizenship and Immigration Canada.
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Since July, more than 7,000 people have walked across the border, in an effort to thwart immediate deportation on account of a bi-lateral agreement between Canada and the United States.
The influx of asylum seekers – which on some days sees hundreds crossing over – led the federal government early last month to set up a tent camp near the New York State border with Quebec.
Public safety Minister Ralph Goodale’s office said that although the number of people crossing into Canada to seek asylum has “somewhat moderated” in recent weeks, the government is not going to be complacent.
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“It is far too soon to determine a trend,” a spokesperson for Goodale told Global News.
“Looking ahead to colder seasons, contingency planning is underway to plan for different possible volumes of asylum seekers coming across the border.”
According to a tender notice published this week, the contract will require supplying and installing insulated, waterproofed and heated structures “providing a good level of comfort in all seasons.”
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The government is looking for either mobile or pre-fabricated units that together will have separate spaces for sleeping; storing, preparing and eating food; living and rest; showers, toilets and sinks; and space for laundry and a medical clinic.
Whichever company wins the contract will also have to set up perimeter fencing and lighting, according to the tender notice.
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The government will be looking at a relatively tight timeline, expecting the facilities to be operational six weeks after the contracts are inked. Once the all-season camp is established, the government is looking at keeping it operational “for a period of up to nine months,” or longer.
There is no cost yet associated with the potential contract.
Speaking to reporters Friday afternoon, Transport Minister Marc Garneau said determining the cost isn’t the priority right now.
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“We will certainly have some numbers to provide, but for the moment … our priority is to anticipate what might occur in the coming months,” he said in French.
Still, a poll released Friday indicated more than half of Canadians (53 per cent of respondents) believe the country “is being too generous” toward the would-be refugees who have been jumping the border, skirting the “Safe Third Country Agreement” between the United States and Canada.
An even higher percentage of poll respondents – 57 per cent – said they disapprove Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s handling of the situation overall, according to the Angus Reid poll of 1,505 Canadians.
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