December 3, 2014 — Ottawa — Canada's Citizenship and Immigration Minister Chris Alexander today announced that Mario Dion has been appointed as Chairperson of the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada (IRB), effective January 1, 2015. The appointment is for a 5-year term.
Mr. Dion, 58, has more than 30 years of distinguished service in the public sector. His achievements include playing a key role in the historic 2006 settlement that Canada reached with victims of residential school abuse, serving as chairman of the National Parole Board (2006-2009) and as Commissioner of Public Sector Integrity (2011-2014).
A Montréal native, Mr. Dion obtained a law degree from the University of Ottawa in 1979 and began his legal career in 1980 as a legal advisor at the then-Ministry of the Solicitor General.
In 2003, Mr. Dion was appointed Deputy Minister of Indian Residential Schools Resolution of Canada, where he led efforts to bring closure to 16,000 pending litigation files and, ultimately, the historic 2006 agreement with former residential school students.
The IRB is Canada's largest independent administrative tribunal. It is responsible for making well-reasoned decisions on immigration and refugee matters, efficiently, fairly and in accordance with the law.
Kevin Menard
Minister's Office
Citizenship and Immigration Canada
613-954-1064
Media Relations
Communications Branch
Citizenship and Immigration Canada
613-952-1650
CIC-Media-Relations@cic.gc.ca
Building a stronger Canada: Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) strengthens Canada’s economic, social and cultural prosperity, helping ensure Canadian safety and security while managing one of the largest and most generous immigration programs in the world.
