‘Abnormal’: Quebec says there are still too many asylum seekers entering the province

Quebec’s immigration minister says the number of asylum seekers entering the province is “abnormal.”

Christine Fréchette told reporters today that the federal government needs to do more to distribute would-be refugees across the country.

She says that since the closure of Roxham Road — the irregular land border crossing between Quebec and New York state — there are now too many asylum seekers showing up at the province’s airports.

Federal government statistics show that 17,080 people claimed asylum at Quebec airports between January and September of this year, more than double the second-highest province for airport claimants, Ontario.