Honesty may cost man life in Canada

By: Lana Haight, National Post

 

A British computer programmer says his moment of candour about a youthful dalliance with marijuana is putting his dream of living in Canada in jeopardy.

 

Chris Tarttelin, 37, said he has been ordered by Citizenship and Immigration Canada to undergo a psychiatric evaluation to make sure he's not suffering any lingering effects from having tried cannabis when he was 18.

 

If he fails to get a psychiatric assessment by tomorrow, he said, it could block his application to immigrate.

 

Mr. Tarttelin moved to Saskatoon in 2008 with his wife and two children after having been recruited by Point2 Technologies under the Saskatchewan Immigration Nominee Program. In June, Mr. Tarttelin attended a mandatory medical exam. The doctor's checklist included a question on drug use.

 

"I tried pot but didn't really take to it particularly. I tried it a couple of times but that was about it," Mr. Tarttelin recalled telling the doctor.

 

Mr. Tarttelin said that in July he received a letter from Citizenship and Immigration directing him back to the doctor, who told him he had 60 days to submit to a psychiatric exam.

 

"You can't see a psychiatrist in Saskatoon in that time frame," said Mr. Tarttelin, who got a Sept. 20 appointment. "I'm a painfully honest person. It doesn't normally occur to me to answer questions any other way."