Two conservative MPs want prime minister Justin Trudeau to spend some time in the community of Emerson and experience what's happening in connection to the surge of asylum seekers who are crossing into Manitoba from the U.S.

Provencher MP Ted Falk, and Calgary MP Michelle Rempel held a news conference Friday at the former Noyes, Minnesota border crossing near Emerson where they presented a joint statement publicly asking Prime Minister Trudeau for several specific solutions to the illegal border crossing issue, that the community of Emerson and surrounding area are dealing with.

Falk said Trudeau is not only unwilling to stop these illegal border crossings, but he actually appears to be openly encouraging it.

"This encouragement has had an impact. In January we had a record 19 people crossing into Manitoba illegally, that number jumped to 142 in February and in March it again rose to 170. That's a total of 331 people in just the first three months crossing into Manitoba illegally in and around the Emerson port of entry."

Rempel discussing asylum seekers issue with local resident

Falk added, at that pace, Manitoba will see over 1000 people entering the province illegally this year. He pointed out this is not just an Emerson issue and that Quebec has seen over 1000 migrants since the start of the year.

"That's exactly why we are here today," said Falk. "We are here to invite Prime Minister Trudeau to tour the area with us to see for himself what's happening and speak to the folks in Emerson about the concerns shared by millions across Canada."

Rempel, who is the Tory immigration critic, and Falk stood at the Noyes border where the illegal migrants have been known to cross and pointed out that the growing number of people walking across fields from the United States is a drain on resources and is a safety concern for local residents.

"That's why we strongly believe that in order for this problem to be permanently solved the federal government must close the loophole in the U.S./Canada Safe Third Country agreement that allows people to illegally cross the border and still make an asylum claim. The other concern we have is that this is a very unsafe activity," explained Remple.

Rempel is requesting an emergency debate on the issue to be held in the House of commons next week.

The news conference quickly dissolved up after arguments broke out among area residents who were the event. Emerson resident Joyce Dayton challenged Rempel and said the refugee-claimants are simply seeking safety. Tanya Neufeld, who lives just outside Emerson, defended Rempel and said the federal government has made the border too open.