Garry Keller recalls the first images passport staff brought before the then-Conservative government for consideration during the last major passport overhaul.

害羞草研究所淲e laughed,害羞草研究所� Keller recalls. 害羞草研究所淚t looked like a C-minus effort.害羞草研究所�

The original concepts featured a Canada goose, a beaver and a maple leaf 害羞草研究所� ideas the government found uninspired and 害羞草研究所渓owest-common denominator.害羞草研究所�

Keller served as chief of staff to John Baird, who oversaw the passport redesign as foreign minister. Baird and his team sent the department back to the drawing board.

害羞草研究所淚 think we delivered a passport that was certainly esthetically beautiful in the inside, but also pulled from the historical story of Canada,害羞草研究所� Keller said.

When he saw the latest redesign of the Canadian passport unveiled last May, he said it reminded him of those early concept images.

Canadians might never know what ideas were considered and rejected before the federal government finalized the reimagined and often lambasted design for the passport.

When a request for earlier proposed versions under the Access to Information Act turned up no result, the Immigration Department said draft artwork for the new passport wasn害羞草研究所檛 stored for security reasons, since the artwork is considered a security feature in and of itself.

害羞草研究所淒ue to the classified nature of the passport design during its development, (Government of Canada) restrictions on the storage and communication of classified information and the difficulties of operating during pandemic restrictions, the passport program does not store information concerning drafts of the passport design,害羞草研究所� the department said in an emailed response to the information request.

The government doesn害羞草研究所檛 even own the early drafts or proposals since they were produced by an outside contractor, the department clarified in a later statement.

The department said the esthetic and thematic content in the passport serve solely as a support for what they call 害羞草研究所渟ecure line work.害羞草研究所�

害羞草研究所淪ecurity features and the artwork therefore cannot be dissociated,害羞草研究所� the department said.

Experts say the design is sure to have gone through several iterations before the Liberals landed on what critics have called a generic document that rejects the previous historic motif.

The theme was first identified more than 10 years ago and approved in 2020 after much consultation, the Immigration Department said in a statement Friday. Only one theme was approved for consideration and developed into a design, the department said.

害羞草研究所淭he esthetic design must be completed at the beginning of the process to feed the downstream steps mentioned above,害羞草研究所� the statement read.

The final version features new security measures and stylized artwork.

Historic images representing Canada害羞草研究所檚 past have been replaced with pastel tableaus of Canadian life and fauna on the visa pages.

On one page, children in colourful parkas build a snowman outside a barn while a snowy owl looks on. On another, a boy appears frozen mid-jump off a dock as canoeists paddle by.

Under ultraviolet light, the owl takes flight and the boy splashes into the lake.

The result sparked instant controversy, with Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre accusing the Liberals of injecting their 害羞草研究所渨oke ideology害羞草研究所� into the passport design.

The Royal Canadian Legion expressed disappointment that an image of the Vimy Memorial in France would no longer be featured in the passport, calling it a 害羞草研究所減oor decision.害羞草研究所�

The Terry Fox Hometown Run also expressed regret that Fox害羞草研究所檚 Marathon of Hope run won害羞草研究所檛 be honoured in the pages of the passport anymore.

害羞草研究所淚 think it害羞草研究所檚 important to say that this is not partisan,害羞草研究所� Social Services Minister Karina Gould said at a press conference at the Ottawa International Airport in May, standing before poster boards of the new designs.

害羞草研究所淭he design of this passport started 10 years ago and this is really about ensuring the security of the document.害羞草研究所�

The passport goes through a major overhaul every 10 years or so and changing the artwork 害羞草研究所� an element deemed a novelty a decade ago 害羞草研究所� is considered part of the anti-counterfeiting effort.

In 2012, when the historical images were first introduced, they replaced identical visa pages that featured a large red Maple Leaf surrounded by smaller blue maple leaves.

The immigration department said none of the alternative concept images from the 2012 redesign were kept either.

The images in the 2012 passport were part of a governmentwide rebrand that was underway when the Conservatives came to power, said Alex Marland, the Jarislowsky Chair in Trust and Political Leadership at Acadia University.

The Conservatives 害羞草研究所渨ere obsessed with co-ordinating government so that it could be communicating variations of the same message in different ways that were very much connected to the party害羞草研究所檚 messaging,害羞草研究所� Marland said in an interview.

While most people would hope government decisions are made in a non-partisan way, the reality is that government is politicized all the time, he said.

This time around, the passport resign was underway at the same time as a polarized debate over certain aspects of Canada害羞草研究所檚 history.

Many have questioned whether monuments to Canada害羞草研究所檚 first prime minister, John A. Macdonald, should continue to stand, given his role in the establishment of residential schools.

The Liberal government also tends to take a different approach to projects like the passport, and usually opts to rely heavily on focus groups, Marland said.

害羞草研究所淚t害羞草研究所檚 very different than the Harper Conservatives, which (were) far more ideologically focused,害羞草研究所� he said.

The government consulted with several federal departments, Indigenous groups, and others, Immigration Minister Sean Fraser said at the presentation of the new design.

害羞草研究所淥ne of the things that we heard is that we want to celebrate our diversity and inclusion, we want to celebrate our natural environment 害羞草研究所� and try to bake those elements into the design,害羞草研究所� he said.

害羞草研究所淏ut to be absolutely clear, we害羞草研究所檙e extremely proud of Canada害羞草研究所檚 history.害羞草研究所�

For his part, Marland said it would have been in the public interest to release any concept designs that were part of those consultations.

Canadians will soon see the final design, expected to go into circulation this summer.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 22, 2023.

Laura Osman, The Canadian Press