Feds to back down on contentious elements of refugee bill

The federal government is expected to concede on a pair of opposition concerns about a bill aimed at cracking down on bogus refugee claimants, Postmedia News has learned.

Sources say the government will agree to amend provisions in Bill C-31, the Protecting Canada's Immigration Act, that call for "irregular arrivals" to be subject to automatic detention for up to a year without review of their case.

These are individuals who arrive en masse by plane or boat, for example, and are suspected of being involved in human-smuggling.

Immigration Minister Jason Kenney is expected to announce Wednesday afternoon that the government will reduce the detention before review period to 14 days.

Critics have complained that the detention period was cruel and a breach of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.