The Trudeau government struck a deal to close the illegal Roxham Road border crossing, sources told CBC News.
After more than a month of pressure from Quebec Premier Francois Legault, the federal Liberals struck a deal with United States counterparts to close the illegal border crossing between New York State and Quebec.
The deal will terminate a legal loophole, enabling Canadian law enforcement to begin rejecting migrants that seek entry from the U.S. In exchange, the Trudeau government agreed to welcome 15,000 extra migrants through separate, legal channels, CBC reported.
The Trudeau government is expected to release details about the deal Friday.
The news comes more than a month after Legault publicized a firm stance against the border crossing. Legault in February called on Trudeau to announce the crossing was closed, and said Quebec could not receive any more migrants.
The New York Post earlier that month reported New York City was bussing migrants near to Canada’s border crossing, apparently to allow the migrants to channel up into Canada.
As Legault said Quebec was full-capacity, the Trudeau government worked to distribute Roxham Road crossers to other parts of Canada. This month, a charity director told True North that migrants were coming in thousands to Niagara Falls – and that the region was dealing with a housing crisis.
