Proposed amendments in Canada’s immigration laws: Bill C-50 receives third and final reading in the House

The Canadian House of Commons has finally approved controversial immigration reforms in Canada’s immigrations laws by a vote of 120:90.

The proposed legislative amendments, which were embedded in 2008 Budget Implementation Bill or Bill C-50, received its third and final reading in the House of Commons on Monday night and finally approved by 120 to 90 votes.

Now to become the part of immigration laws, these amendments need Senate approval and royal assent that is expected within two weeks.

As described earlier, the amendments will give the immigration minister greater selection powers to limit the number of new immigration applicants. It will also allow the government to fast-track applications from the types of immigrants it wants, such as skilled workers, and freeze applications from others.

Because Bill C-50 was a confidence matter and, had the government lost the vote, Prime Minister Stephen Harper would have been obliged to ask the Governor General to dissolve Parliament and call a general election.

Two mainstream opposition parties NDP and Bloc Québécois wanted to force an election on the issue, so voted against the bill but the Liberals does not find itself election ready, so they abstained. Nearly 80 Liberal MPs were absent from the House during the vote, enabling the minority Conservative government to get the bill approved easily.

Proposed amendments in Canada’s immigration laws: Commons approve Bill C-50, reject NDP amendments; final vote time approaching

Controversial amendments to Canada’s immigration laws that were proposed with Budget 2008-09 Implementation Bill, or Bill C-50, are going to become part of law in just few days!

After completing its clause-by-clause study of Bill C-50, Finance Committee has returned it to House of Commons for a trust vote, where it has been approved by a vote of 114:83 on Monday night. Because the controversial immigration amendments were embedded in Bill C-50, these have also been approved.

The Conservative led government has also survived two other trust votes on these controversial proposals moved by the New Democratic Party (NDP) to amend the bill.

However, the Bill C-50, including the controversial immigration amendments, would not become law until it survives a final vote in the House of Commons, and then adopted by the Senate.

The House of Common will sit till June 6 for this purpose, but the government could extend the sitting time to June 20.

Once passed, the new measures will apply to applications received on or after February 27, 2008. Those who applied prior to February 27, 2008, will not be subject to the new measures and will be dealt with fairly under the existing rules.

Meanwhile, a country-wide poll conducted by Nanos Research for Policy Options magazine suggests majority of Canadians think the government's immigration policy should focus on pumping up the national workforce and reuniting families.

The poll, which was conducted in an anticipation of proposed Conservative bill, suggests 84.9 per cent of Canadians thought it is important to select immigrants whose skills meet the needs of Canada's starved workforce, and about 81.1 per cent thought family reunification is just as important. A total of 72.6 per cent of Canadians feel immigration is “important” or “somewhat important” for the future of the country.

Canada announces new funding for enhanced training in both official languages

Language training is one of several settlement services funded by the federal government to help immigrants integrate into their new communities. To recognize the importance of language skills in successful settlement of a newcomer, government is investing millions of dollars in two key language training programs: the Language Instruction for Newcomers to Canada program (LINC) and the Enhanced Language Training program (ELT).

To promote the objectives of ELT, federal government has recently invested in various programs and services that will offer their participants an opportunity to learn real life options within a Canadian context, outline clear pathways to employment and build the social capital within Canadian cities.

Under the $920 million Canada-Ontario Immigration Agreement (COIA), Sheridan College Institute of Technology and Advanced Learning will receive over $5.5 million to build English language training, mentorship and career development programs for newcomers. Designed specifically for internationally trained professionals, these services will help approximately 800 individuals preparing to enter the Canadian labor market.

These services will be offered at Sheidan’s campuses in Oakville and Brampton, and participants will be allowed access to the library, career centres and computer labs.

Yukon College is also receiving $129,000 to deliver job-specific language training to help prepare newcomers for jobs in Canada that match their skills and qualifications. This also makes it easier for immigrants to integrate into the community. Funding for enhanced language training is provided on a yearly basis and renewed every school year.

And under the $2.7 million in basic settlement funding to New Brunswick for 2008-09, the Multicultural Association of Fredericton will receive about $2.7 million to deliver services that will help newcomers become established in Fredericton and surrounding areas. These services include language training, translation and interpretation, and referrals to community resources. The Association will also provide youth settlement workers who will work with newcomer youth in the community.

Under Canadian government’s five-year Strategic Plan to Foster Immigration to Francophone Minority Communities and Canada’s Official Languages Action Plan, the Fédération des francophones de la Colombie-Britannique (FFCB) will receive $104,000 to develop tools, activities and partnerships aimed at attracting and integrating French-speaking immigrants to Francophone minority communities outside Quebec. In 2006, more than 1,553 French-speaking newcomers settled in British Columbia.

The Association Franco-Yukonnaise (AFY) will also receive over $212,000 to deliver services in both official languages to newcomers in Yukon. The AFY also provides services for Francophones in minority communities, welcomes all newcomers, and encourages their participation in their new communities.

Government of Canada’s Strategic Plan to Foster Immigration to Francophone Minority Communities is a five-year plan to improve capacity building and developing the broad, long-term partnerships within the community required to integrate Francophone immigrants into Canadian society. This action plan was started in September 2006.

Canada announces new funding to deliver settlement assistance to newcomers and refugees

To help newcomers settle, adapt and integrate into Canadian society, Canadian government, in partnership with provinces, territories and settlement providers, has been delivering programs and services to migrants, and providing stakeholders necessary funding to support these initiatives.

Under the Workplace Skills Initiative of Advantage Canada plan, government is investing over $560,000 in the Work in Nova Scotia (WINS) project. Nova Scotia designed WINS not only to help integrate newcomers into the workplace but also to address skills gaps and labor shortages in small- and medium-sized businesses. It is estimated that approximately 350 individuals and 250 small- and medium-sized enterprises will benefit from this project. WINS is managed by the Metropolitan Immigrant Settlement Association (MISA) and was launched as a bridging program to help newcomers in Nova Scotia achieve their employment goals. The Nova Scotia Office of Immigration will also contribute $36,275 to support the project.

As part of $1.4 billion ‘additional settlement funding package’ to provinces and territories other than Quebec, the Multicultural Association of Fredericton in New Brunswick will receive about $2.7 million to deliver services that will help newcomers become established in Fredericton and surrounding areas. These services include language training, translation and interpretation, and referrals to community resources. The Association will also provide youth settlement workers who will work with newcomer youth in the community.

Under the same federal package, the Multicultural Association of the Greater Moncton Area (MAGMA) in New Brunswick will also receive $1.3 million funding to help newcomers access orientation and other services, including referrals to community resources and assistance, language training in both French and English, and help establishing contacts in their field of work.

For 2008-09, New Brunswick will be receiving more than $2.7 million in basic settlement funding, an increase of more than $900,000 over the previous year.

Under the $6.5 million Resettlement Assistance Program of Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) for 2008-09, the Immigrant Services Society of British Columbia will receive more than $1.3 million to assist up to 800 refugees with temporary accommodations, food and incidentals, orientation sessions and counselling and referral services. This is in addition to $109 million settlement funding that is being provided to the Province directly for 2008-09 to design and deliver settlement support services to all newcomers including refugees.

Canada and Yukon announce new agreement to encourage immigration in the territory

To establish a collaborative approach encouraging immigration to Yukon, the federal government and the territorial government of Yukon have decided to strengthen their existing partnership by announcing a new agreement on immigration.

The ‘Canada-Yukon Cooperation on Immigration’ agreement will provide a framework to the governments at both level in discharging their shared responsibility on immigration. Build upon the original agreement signed between the two governments in 2001, the new agreement introduced various new provisions aimed to help Yukon’s businesses and economy continue to grow.

For example, new agreement includes a provision that will enhance cooperation between Canada and Yukon in overseas promotion and recruitment activities to help attract skilled immigrants, temporary workers and students to Yukon. Similarly, a modified Yukon Nominee Program (YNP) will run on a one-year pilot with no annual limit.

To address the settlement and integration needs of immigrants and refugees, both governments will promote better working relationship to secure recognition of foreign qualifications and faster integration of immigrants into the labor market.

The new agreement also ensures that federal government will continue to invest in basic settlement services delivered in Yukon through partner agencies. The ongoing funding to the territory since 2006-07 has reached to more than $1 million after a recently announced $341,000 and $219,000 in December 2007. This funding is going toward the delivery of programs and services for newcomers such as information and orientation sessions, language training, and support in establishing networks and contacts.

Besides this settlement funding, federal government is also contributing more than $800,000 over four years to help Yukon launch an immigration web portal for the territory. The new territorial web portal (http://www.immigration.gov.yk.ca/) complements the agreement by enhancing online content, tools and services for newcomers. The portal will serve to promote the territory as a destination of choice, and help immigrants settle and prosper in the region. The portal will also be used to support eligible municipal-level online projects relevant to newcomers.

The agreement also recognizes the territory’s interest in enhancing the vitality of French linguistic minority communities in its jurisdiction.

As of December 2007, Yukon's population was 32,335, an increase of only 379 compared to December 2006. Additionally unemployment is relatively low at 3.9 per cent. In 2006, Yukon welcomed 193 newcomers: 65 permanent residents and 128 temporary residents.

Proposed amendments: Finance Committee starting clause-by-clause study of Bill C-50; final reading is expected in two weeks

As far as the final vote time on Bill C-50 is approaching, the situation about the proposed amendments in Canada’s immigration laws is becoming more and more confusing.

The Budget 2008-09 Implementation Bill, or Bill C-50, that proposes few controversial amendments in current immigration procedures is under review of House of Common’s Finance Committee these days. The committee is starting a clause-by-clause study of the said bill this week, after that it will be sent back to Commons for a third and final vote. The House of Common will sit for another two weeks until June 6, but the government could extend the sitting time to June 20.

Meanwhile, the House of Common’s Immigration Committee has submitted a report to Finance Committee and recommended to kill these controversial amendments from Bill C-50. The report argues that proposed amendments in immigration laws would not apply to applicants before February 27, 2008, and due to the prioritization of new applications, the current wait times will further increase for applicants who applied before February 27.

The New Democratic Party (NDP) of Canada also suggested Finance Committee to split the budget bill into two bills by separating the budget reforms and proposed immigration reforms.

Outside of the Parliament, the Canadian Bar Association, the Canadian Labor Congress, the faith groups and immigrant communities across Canada have expressed their reservations about the proposed amendments.

While on the other hand, government seems very confident that the proposed changes will help reduce a backlog of nearly one million applications of permanent residence and make Canada’s immigration system more responsive to labor market needs. Conservatives are fully struggling to pass the bill in its actual form and declared that no amendment in the proposed legislation will be accepted.

Now in the emerging situation, the role of Liberals will become more and more important in the coming days. Liberals dominate in the Senate of Canada and they may support government’s proposed amendments in the Senate as they did in the House of Commons. Liberals have also refused to support the cross-country hearings on this important legislation when the Finance Committee proposes to launch a study to come up with an alternative approach that would accomplish the same goals while protecting the integrity of the system.

Ontario funds 40 new bridge training programs for internationally trained newcomers

The Ontario government has announced to invest $24.7 million in providing skilled newcomers a better access to jobs that match their qualifications and experience.

The funding will be used for 40 new provincial projects that will help internationally trained newcomers bridge their credentials and experience into Ontario qualifications. This bridging will be provided in various job sectors including education, engineering, finance, healthcare, research and innovation, social work and trades through occupation-specific language and technical trainings, mentorship, skills assessment and work experience.

For example, University of Toronto will receive $192,630 in funding to develop a language assessment tool recognized professionally to help more internationally trained pharmacists pass their licensing exam. Likewise, the Ontario Society of Professional Engineers will receive $83,800 in funding to design a pre-exam course to prepare engineers to write the Professional Practice Examination, part of the licensure process for internationally trained engineers.

These new bridging projects are expected to benefit 3,000 skilled newcomers to GTA, Kitchener-Waterloo Region, Hamilton, London, Niagara Region and Ottawa.

As part of the Canada-Ontario Immigration Agreement, the federal government is contributing $8.1 million to partially fund some of these bridging projects.

Since 2003 the Ontario government has invested over $85 million in 145 bridge training programs, helping more than 20,000 newcomers improve their language skills, prepare for exams and work in their field sooner.