Air Canada apologises over questioning of UK MP Mohammad Yasin

Air Canada did the right thing in apologizing to a British lawmaker named Mohammad Yasin who was recently singled out for additional questioning while flying to and from Canada, the country's transport minister said on Wednesday.

Canadian Transport Minister Pablo Rodriguez said "we called Air Canada" after hearing about the incident where British Labour Member of Parliament Mohammad Yasin was peppered with questions while traveling with a British parliamentary committee to Canada last week.

"Air Canada apologized and apologizing was the right thing to do," Rodriguez told reporters in Ottawa.

Air Canada said in a statement that additional screening procedures when checking in any customer may be prompted by any authorized government agency and airlines are required to comply.

"After receiving such a prompt, we followed the prescribed procedures for this customer and, although this resulted in some discomfort for him, for which we have apologized, the customer was cleared and able to board and stay on his travel schedule," the country's largest carrier said.

Labour MP Clive Betts told the U.K. House of Commons on Monday that Yasin was asked whether he was carrying a knife or other weapon and where he was born.

"He was told it was because his name was Mohammad," Betts said. "The questioning was undertaken by officials from Air Canada and we believe the Canadian government."

The challenges of a "racist and islamophobic" nature were raised both at airports in London, England, and in Montreal, Betts said. Yasin was again challenged in Toronto.

He was eventually able to board.

Yasin told the BBC on Tuesday that "it was stressful and humiliating to be singled out in such an aggressive way by immigration control, especially when travelling in a group as a representative of the British Parliament on long arranged committee business."

Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) declined comment citing privacy concerns. (Reporting By Allison Lampert in Montreal Editing by Marguerita Choy and Diane Craft)

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