Adrian Wyld/The Canadian Press Tory Leader Andrew Scheer rises during question period in the House of Commons on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on Dec. 12, 2018.

OTTAWA — "It attempts to influence how our free and independent media report on immigration issues." —Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer on the UN Global Compact for Migration, Dec. 4, 2018 ———————————————————————————————————————————————— The Global Compact for Migration is the first UN agreement on international migration. It is billed as a co-operative framework. It is not a UN treaty and is not legally binding. Scheer disagrees with Canada's support for it. He says he fears it will give foreign entities influence over Canada's immigration system and it will influence media coverage of immigration issues. Watch: Europe divided over UN migration compact

Is the Conservative leader's specific claim, that the compact attempts to influence free and independent media reporting on immigration issues, true? Spoiler alert: The Canadian Press Baloney Meter is a dispassionate examination of political statements culminating in a ranking of accuracy on a scale of "no baloney'' to "full of baloney'' (complete methodology below). This one earns a rating of "A lot of baloney"— the statement is mostly inaccurate but contains elements of truth. Here's why: THE FACTS Consensus on the final version of the Global Compact on Migration was reached this summer in New York at the sixth round of negotiations on the international policy document. A total of 164 countries among the 193 UN members approved the agreement by acclamation on Monday, including Canada. The compact contains 23 objectives and commitments. One of the objectives — No. 17 — includes a call to eliminate "all forms of discrimination and promote evidence-based public discourse to shape perceptions of migration." In order to achieve this, the agreement text calls for the promotion of independent, objective and quality reporting by media outlets, including "internet-based information." It adds this involves "sensitizing and educating media professionals on migration-related issues and terminology, investing in ethical reporting standards and advertising, and stopping allocation of public funding or material support to media outlets that systematically promote intolerance, xenophobia, racism and other forms of discrimination towards migrants, in full respect for the freedom of the media." Hussen says agreement won't place limits on press freedom The federal Conservatives have pointed to this language as evidence of an attempt to influence press freedom. For example, Ontario Conservative MP David Tilson posted on his website to express concerns about it. "The GCM contains troubling language around 'sensitizing and educating' journalists on how they should report about immigration," he posted. "Conservatives believe Canadian journalists should be free to scrutinize the government on immigration policy without influence from an international body." In response to these concerns, Immigration Minister Ahmed Hussen denied Tuesday that the agreement will mean any limit on press freedom in Canada. "This document ... reinforces the importance of media to public discourse," he said during a teleconference from Marrakech, Morocco. Canada has worked with other countries to achieve the same press freedom and standards, he added.

The Canadian Press Immigration Minister Ahmed Hussen denied claims that the UN migration agreement would place any limits on press freedom in Canada.