Conservative MP presses Ottawa on citizenship backlog affecting Alberta IDs

A Conservative MP called on the federal government to move Albertans to the front of a citizenship certificate queue on Friday, saying a processing backlog she attributed to Bill C-3 is leaving residents unable to renew their driver's licences and health cards.

Calgary Nose Hill MP Michelle Rempel Garner said during question period that Alberta now requires proof of citizenship to receive or renew those provincial documents, forcing some residents to obtain a citizenship certificate from the federal government. She said wait times have ballooned to 33 months, which she said was mostly because of applications from non-residents, and called on the minister to prioritize processing for Albertans.

Bill C-3, An Act to amend the Citizenship Act, passed on Dec. 15, 2025. The government introduced it in response to a December 2023 Ontario Superior Court ruling that struck down key provisions of the first-generation citizenship limit as unconstitutional.

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Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Immigration Peter Fragiskatos said the bill was a direct response to that court decision and that the immigration committee had worked constructively on it. He did not address the 33-month processing figure Rempel Garner cited, nor did he say whether the government would treat Alberta applicants differently from others. He said the point she raised is "one the government continues to be aware of and work on" before turning to the Conservative record on immigration more broadly — a line the Speaker cut short when he recognized the next member.

Rempel Garner had said Conservatives opposed the bill. Fragiskatos confirmed that, saying: "I know the Conservatives opposed fundamental tenets of that bill, but we did respond in a very good way to the court decision."

The Ontario Superior Court decision in the Bjorkquist case, issued Dec. 19, 2023, found that provisions setting out the first-generation limit were unconstitutional for many people. The resulting legislative changes expanded eligibility for citizenship by descent, increasing the number of people who can apply for certificates.

Question period also included an exchange between NDP MP Leah Gazan of Winnipeg Centre and Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Transport Mike Kelloway over Bill C-39 and a Senate bill known as S-2, which Gazan said the government was refusing to pass in an attempt to keep sexism and racism in the Indian Act. Gazan called on the government to withdraw Bill C-39 and pass S-2 without delay. Kelloway said the legislation is about changing processes, not standards, and that the government's priority is ensuring First Nations partnerships and consultation on projects across the country. He did not address S-2 or Gazan's call to withdraw Bill C-39.