By Joel Dryden

Copyright cbc

The U.S. ambassador to Canada said Washington may need to reassess airport pre-clearance as part of an at-times animated exchange during a forum with Canadian business leaders on Thursday.

Addressing the Global Business Forum in Banff, Alta., Pete Hoekstra said pre-clearance locations in Canada are experiencing declining numbers.

“Matter of fact, the numbers are down. We’re not sure we can make the numbers work anymore … pre-clearance is something that is done at the expense of the U.S. government. We paid for it,” he said.

“You know, you can’t make the numbers work anymore — you’re all business people. You know what that means. You’ve got to take a look at some of these things.”

The United States has been conducting pre-clearance “under various arrangements” at airports in Canada since 1952. It allows customs and immigration officials from the destination country to be located in the country of origin.

Colin Robertson, a former Canadian diplomat who served as moderator of the forum, later pushed back on those remarks.

“Pre-clearance was brought in by [president Dwight] Eisenhower. It’s worked really well,” said Robertson, the vice-president of the Canadian Global Affairs Institute.

“When Canadians go to the States — maybe not as many did a year and a half ago or half a year ago — but we’re still going an awful lot. We’re your biggest source of tourism. If you end pre-clearance, doesn’t that cut off your nose to spite your face?”

Hoekstra responded: “Nobody said we’re ending pre-clearance. Don’t put words in my mouth.”

“I heard you say, ‘We have to look at it,'” Robertson said.

“These are all business people, all right? If you have a business segment that is down 20 to 25 per cent,” Hoekstra said.

‘It was like a threat’

Speaking to reporters after the interview, Robertson said it was clear to him that the U.S. is reconsidering the long-standing practice.

“To me, it was like a threat, saying, all right, if you don’t come, we’re going to cut out pre-clearance,” he said.

If the U.S. were to proceed with the change, it would be important to understand why, he added.

“But it is something … that will cause hardship to a lot of Canadians if you were to proceed it that way.”

According to the latest Statistics Canada figures from August, the number of Canadians returning by air from the U.S. fell 25.4 per cent compared with the same month last year.

U.S. customs and immigration officers are currently conducting pre-clearance operations at airports in Calgary, Edmonton, Halifax, Montreal, Ottawa, Toronto, Vancouver and Winnipeg.