Article content

OTTAWA — The federal government is planning to build temporary housing for up to 520 people at a Quebec border crossing that has been the scene of an influx of asylum seekers.

Public Works and the Canada Border Services Agency say in a notice that the housing units are for Saint-Bernard-de-Lacolle — the municipality where the majority of RCMP interceptions of irregular migrants in Quebec take place.

We apologize, but this video has failed to load.

tap here to see other videos from our team. Try refreshing your browser, or Canadian government to build temporary housing for asylum seekers at Quebec border crossing Back to video

The Opposition says the Liberal government is effectively setting up a refugee camp at the Canada-U.S. border by building the housing.

“I’m not sure any Canadian would think that this is an acceptable response,” Conservative immigration critic Michelle Rempel said Friday.

Photo by Charles Krupa / AP

Rempel said there is a frustrating lack of information flowing from the government about the makeup and needs of asylum seekers.

“How can I say how much money they should be needing when we don’t even know what their needs are? And that is the result of having no plan for immigration. It’s bananas,” she said.