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SAINT-BERNARD-DE-LACOLLE, Que. — Bloc Quebecois Leader Yves-Francois Blanchet is calling for the suspension of a border agreement between Canada and the United States that he says encourages illegal immigration.

Blanchet told a news conference today the Safe Third Country Agreement with the United States should be put on hold.

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The agreement requires asylum seekers to request refugee status in the first safe country in which they arrive, meaning people are not allowed to travel through the United States and seek asylum in Canada, or vice versa.

But there is a loophole in the agreement, permitting people entering Canada between official ports of entry to claim refugee status in the country, even if they could have applied in the U.S. first.

Over the past three years, RCMP have intercepted nearly 50,000 people crossing into Canada this way, the vast majority of them in Quebec.

Blanchet is also calling on the federal government to hire additional refugee board members to reduce a backlog of asylum applications.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 23, 2019.