I have discussed with Mr. Crean your memorandum of April 16t on the control of aliens in Canada and I now return it to you.

2. What has happened during the past few months is that various developments are beginning to merge and are becoming inextricably intertwined. The problems raised by the request of certain Western European countries that we enter into agreements for the mutual abolition of non-immigrant visas have become tangled with the wider problem of establishing more effective controls at our borders over the movement of persons. The impetus to the establishment of these more effective controls at the borders was first given by the organized movement of Yugoslays from Canada. The pressure for more effective controls has been increased by the apprehension of the Canadian Government over the activities in Canada of fifth-column groups, directed to some extent at least by the Communist diplomatic and consular missions in Canada.

3. I had been somewhat concerned by the failure of this Department to pursue more vigorously the questions raised at the Interdepartmental meeting of June 17, 1947, since that meeting was held on the direction of the Minister, and he has legitimate grounds for complaint against the Department for not having brought the matter to a head. You will recall that my comment on the Consular Division's memorandum of October 11, 1947, was that we should have the next Interdepartmental meeting "soon". Owing, I assume, to the pressure of work on the Consular Division at the time, no action was taken by that Division.

4. However, it is probable that this delay has actually been advantageous since it now makes it possible for us to bring the whole host of related problems together and to give Cabinet a comprehensive memorandum on the whole question.

5. The valid concern in Canada over the activities of Communist agents in this country clearly makes it necessary for the Government to take action. Unless the Government can demonstrate that it is taking wise and useful action, public opinion may force it to take action which would not, at least in my opinion, be wise or useful. The kind of action I have in mind is the banning of the Communist Party, forbidding the use of the mails to Communist publications, and the breaking off of diplomatic relations with Communist states in order to prevent them from using their missions here as centres for subversive activities.

6. It seems to me, therefore that it is the duty of the Government's advisers to put before Cabinet a well-considered programme.

7. I would therefore suggest that your Division should undertake the task of preparing a draft memorandum to Cabinet which would first be considered by an interdepartmental group and then be submitted to Cabinet by the Ministers concerned - the Secretary of State for External Affairs, the Minister of Justice, the Minister of Mines and Resources and the Secretary of State.

8. The draft memorandum to Cabinet might begin with an explanation of the reasons which have led to a study of the problem by the Departments concerned. It would probably begin by mentioning the organized emigration of Yugoslays and the statement made by our Minister in the House of Commons on this subject, in which he said that the Departments concerned would investigate what action could be taken by the Government to minimize the danger to the State which might result from such movements.

9. Mention might then be made of the necessity of taking all practicable measures to exclude Communist agents from Canada or to hinder their activities if they are already here and cannot be deported. Two steps have already been taken to exclude Communist agents from Canada: refusal of immigration visas to Communists; refusal to admit certain known Communists as non-immigrants. The memorandum might then point out that the Immigration Act and the Citizenship Act are deficient in their present form and explain that there are a number of related problems: control over the exit of aliens and naturalized Canadians; registration of aliens in Canada; registration of the agents of foreign principals in Canada; more effective provisions for depriving naturalized citizens of their citizenship for cause; more effective provisions for providing for loss of domicile by naturalized Canadians.

10. Mention might be made of the fact that citizenship may now be revoked and resident aliens may be deported if they commit certain criminal offenses, It may be that the criminal code should be amended in order to add to the list of offenses constituting grounds for revocation or deportation. Mr. Ilsley has promised to consider this matter (Hansard, April 26, page 3348).

11. This consideration has, I am told, been carried quite far by the Department of Justice. One proposal which they are studying is the strengthening of the paragraph in the criminal code on sedition.

12. The Conservatives in the House of Commons, in the debate on the R.C.M.P. Pensions Bill, also raised the question of the registration of agents of foreign principals. This proposal is, to some extent, tied up with our desire to exercise control over Communist propaganda in Canada which is sent out from the diplomatic and consular missions of Communist countries here (see Hansard for April 26, page 3341, speech by Mr. A.L. Smith).

13. Somewhere in your memorandum you should refer to the proposals by various Western European countries to abolish non-immigrant visas, pointing out the additional loss of control of the entry of non-immigrants to Canada which would result if these agreements were entered into unless action were taken along the lines set forth below in the memorandum.

14. The memorandum might then point out that there are certain steps which could be taken within the limits of existing legislation and would put forward for the consideration of Cabinet a series of recommendations. (These are outlined in your present memorandum but they should be developed).

15. The last part of the memorandum would point out that the problem, however, cannot be fully met without new legislation and would put forward a series of recommendations on new legislation. (These are likewise outlined in your existing memorandum but should be developed).

16. This draft memorandum would then be sent to the Deputy Ministers of the Departments concerned, referring back to our letters of August 25, 1947, apologizing for the delay in carrying this matter forward, requesting the Departments to study the memorandum and to send a representative to a meeting at which it would be revised for presentation to Cabinet.

17. After revision, it would then be submitted to the Ministers concerned for their approval, and then submitted to Cabinet.

18. One of the points in the file which is obscure is that there seems to have been no reply ever received from Washington to our despatch No. 2863 of October 23, 1947, on the proposal that the United States cooperate with us in making it necessary for persons leaving Canada to take up permanent residence in another country to produce at the border a certificate indicating that they are not indebted to the Canadian Government for income tax.

19. The presentation of the draft memorandum which we suggest will, I am afraid, be a big job, but perhaps you could get Mr. Home¹ to do it. I would suggest that, before Mr. Home's draft is sent outside the Department, it be sent to the Legal Adviser and to Mr. Crean for revision.

20. In view of the magnitude of the problems concerned, it seems to me that you were right in the suggestion you made a couple of weeks ago that we should now advise the Western European countries which have asked for visa agreements with us that we cannot, for the present, give them a definite answer but that we hope to be able to take the matter up again with them in a few months' time.

E. REID

¹H.R. Home.