A draft of the Liberal government's long-anticipated new Immigration Act contains an expanded definition of refugees that goes beyond the United Nations Convention on Refugees to include a new category for "people in need of protection."

The new classification would vastly widen the notion of asylum, opening up Canada's refugee system not only to those who fear torture in their homeland, but to those who fear becoming the "object of cruel and unusual treatment or punishment."

An 89-page draft copy of the new legislation, dated March 1 and marked "secret," was obtained by Leon Benoit, the Reform party's immigration critic.

He said yesterday that he believes the government's proposed broadening of refugee protection goes too far.

"This legislation opens up the refugee concept to anyone," said Mr. Benoit, MP for Lakeland, Alta. "People who clearly wouldn't meet the UN definition would now qualify. I think this act is contrary to what Canadians want to see."

The current Immigration Act, which has been amended in piecemeal fashion about 30 times since it was proclaimed in 1978, follows the definition set out in the UN Convention, which states that a refugee must have a well-founded fear of persecution for reasons of race, religion, nationality, political opinion, or membership in a social group. In 1998, 25,000 people filed refugee claims.

Lawyers have long argued that as a signatory to the United Nations Convention on Torture, Canada has an obligation to protect citizens and non-citizens from torture.

However, a recent judgment from the Federal Court of Appeal found that Canada's right to protect itself may on occasion outweigh its obligation to keep some people, such as suspected foreign terrorists, free from torture.

"The new act will make a field day for lawyers and there will be more business to handle for years to come," said Mr. Benoit, who added that a leaked parliamentary schedule indicates the new Immigration Act will be introduced March 30 and be presented for second reading April 3.

The Liberal government has commissioned numerous advisory panels and reports over the years that have scrutinized the current Immigration Act and made hundreds of recommendations in an attempt to streamline the legislation. Critics describe the existing act as complex, convoluted and open to abuse. A multi-party committee is also studying the controversial issue of illegal migration, and is making recommendations to the government.

"There is now cynicism around the committee's ability to have any real input when the government has already written a draft of the new legislation," said Mr. Benoit.

However, Derik Hodgson, press secretary for Elinor Caplan, the Immigration Minister, said the new legislation has not yet gone to cabinet and is still very much a work in progress. He could not comment on the content of it nor on when it will be introduced in the House, but noted an all-day meeting to discuss the legislation is planned for today.

The draft copy obtained by Mr. Benoit includes stiffer penalties for those involved in the smuggling of illegal migrants into Canada. Those found guilty of smuggling 10 or more people into Canada now face a maximum $1-million fine and/or life imprisonment, as do those found guilty of transporting illegals to Canada by sea. Under current legislation, penalties for smuggling range from $5,000 to $100,000 fines and prison terms of five to 10 years.

The changes may have been drafted to meet public concerns about human smuggling, highlighted last summer when a fleet of four smuggling ships with 600 Chinese people aboard arrived off the coast of B.C.

William Bauer, a former ambassador and critic of the immigration system, said the tough penalties sound good in theory, but many criminals who organize smuggling routes do not come to Canada, and those who are caught often get off lightly.

"It sounds terrific to raise the fine to $1-million but no judge has ever imposed more than a $5,000 fine," he said.

Mr. Benoit agrees, noting that from 1995 to 1998, only 14 smuggling charges were laid and the maximum fine imposed was $4,000. He believes minimum fines would be a more effective deterrent.

The draft of the new legislation does not address abuse of the refugee system, said Martin Collacott, who worked for 20 years in the Foreign Affairs Department, serving as Canada's ambassador to several countries. Countries in the European Union, for example, are developing lists of countries from which they will not accept refugees.

"The document does not address the problem with manifestly unfounded claims," said Mr. Collacott. "The current system has trouble dealing with volume because it is multi-layered and has several levels of appeals."

The draft of the new act recommends adding another division to the Immigration and Refugee Board to deal with the new class of refugees. It also recommends that 10% of IRB members should be lawyers. The document does not suggest eliminating patronage appointments to the board -- a change recommended by a government-commissioned 1998 report titled "Not Just Numbers." The report made 172 recommendations, including a proposal to disband the IRB and replace board members with bureaucrats.

"We don't need people who will be caught up in legalese, but people who will make sure the system works," said Mr. Benoit. "I expected an act that would make the system work better for independent immigrants and respond to problems in the family re-unification system."

Mr. Hodgson, the minister's spokesman, said the document is merely a "moving target" and will likely be subject to many more revisions.