Showing posts with label Prince Edward Island. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Prince Edward Island. Show all posts

Ottawa clamps down on immigrants found cheating

Canadian visa for single entryImage via Wikipedia
Nicholas Keung Immigration Reporter
Ottawa is stepping up its effort in combatting cheating immigrants who are selected under one province’s entrepreneur program but end up breaking the terms and moving to another. Cheaters will be issued a warning letter and may lose their permanent resident status, according to a new Citizenship and Immigration Canada operational guideline. Legal experts say this is just the beginning of Ottawa’s attempt to stamp out what they call “trampolining” by immigrants — being accepted by one province but settling in another. The enhanced enforcement begins in Quebec but is expected to expand to other provincially administered immigration programs. Provinces are increasingly taking charge of the selection of economic immigrants to serve the needs of their local labour market and economy, though the federal government is still responsible in issuing permanent resident visas. “These immigrants are selected on the strength of that province. They commit themselves to a province in exchange for an immigrant visa,” said Quebec immigration lawyer Richard Kurland. “It is not right if an entrepreneur or investor says they are going to go work and live in a province and then go to another.” According to Canada’s immigrant database, 11 per cent of the one million new immigrants who came to the country within five years and filed tax returns in 2006 had moved from their declared province of destination. More than 24,000, or 14 per cent, of immigrants originally destined for Quebec ended up filing taxes in other provinces. In recent months, immigration lawyers are seeing a surge of cases where newcomers landing in Canada are turned away at port of entry because they fail to show plane tickets or proof of arranged accommodation for their declared destined city, according to Kurland. The courts, so far, have sided with border officials, Kurland said. In the new department guideline, front-line immigration officers are ordered to “monitor” the entrepreneurs selected by Quebec who now live or have a mailing address outside of the province. It applies to all those admitted under the program after Oct. 16, 2006. A report “should be prepared detailing the allegation of non-compliance . . . (and) be referred to the Immigration Division for an admissibility hearing,” it said. To gain permanent resident status under the Quebec entrepreneur program, an applicant must own at least 25 per cent of a company in the province, with an investment no less than $100,000. Not only do they have to manage the enterprises’ day-to-day operations, they must also stay and live in the province for at least 12 months in the initial three years of residence. Kurland said other provinces will benefit from the new directive, especially if it is going to be expanded to other provincial immigration classes, such as investors and skilled workers programs. The federal government provides funding to newcomers’ language training and integration programs in each province based on the number of immigrants who declare it as their destinations in their immigration applications. The funding doesn’t take “secondary migrants” into account.
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Only Immigration Fuelling Canada’s Population Growth

Canada: Population Density, 2000Image by SEDACMaps via FlickrOTTAWA — Canada’s population in the third quarter of 2010 was driven forward by the highest immigration rates seen in four decades, Statistics Canada reported.
Canada’s population was estimated at 34,238,000 as of Oct. 1 — an increase of 129,300 since July. The federal agency said 65 per cent of that growth came from new Canadians during the three-month period, as 84,200 immigrants arrived in the country, reported Postmedia news service.
The influx reached most provinces and territories, some of which had their highest quarterly immigration levels since 1971.
Prince Edward Island recorded the highest growth rate, with its population increasing by 0.7 per cent. The increase was largely driven by the 1,200 immigrants who arrived in the province, Statistics Canada said, the highest number since 1971.
Quebec, too, welcomed its highest number of immigrants in the last four decades, with 16,800 people arriving from other countries during the quarter. Manitoba also surpassed records set in 1971, with 4,700 new Canadians arriving in that province.
While not breaking a record, immigrants made up 70 per cent of Ontario’s new arrivals during the period.
Alberta was the only province that had third-quarter growth driven by a “natural increase,” which made up 60 per cent of the growth.
Newfoundland and Labrador, on the other hand, actually faced a population decline in the third quarter, losing about 500 residents.
Growth driven by immigration is a trend the federal government said it expects to continue — at least through the end of 2010.
“In 2010, we should be landing the largest number of permanent residents in 50 years,” said Kelli Fraser, a spokeswoman for Citizenship and Immigration Canada.
Canada expects to welcome between 240,000 and 265,000 newcomers by the end of this year.
Fraser said that number is driven largely by a June announcement that Canada would open its doors to more immigrants, especially those in the economic category.
“The reason the announcement was made was because the post-recession economy is now demanding a high level of legal immigration to keep the workforce strong,” she said, adding that there also has been a high number of family reunification immigrants and refugees.
To date, the department said it has already made more decisions, issued more visas and admitted more people to Canada over last year.
It expects the numbers to stabilize at 2010 levels in 2011.
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Panel ponders how to strengthen region's economy

Map highlighting Atlantic CanadaImage via WikipediaThe economic future of Atlantic Canada may depend on developing a brand, according to the president of the University of Prince Edward Island.
"That question of brand is really critical," Wade MacLauchlan said during a panel discussion in St. Andrews on Friday. "It takes us to the question of how do we think about ourselves and what our expectations are, and what we think we have that is a basis for having competitive excellence in the world."
The P.E.I. mussels are one brand that has worked for the region, said MacLauchlan during a discussion on the economic future of Atlantic Canada. The session was part of a three-day Ideas Festival conference, hosted by the Fredericton-based 21inc. and Ottawa's Public Policy Forum.
MacLauchlan noted that P.E.I. mussels show up on menus across the world, and food could be a potential area where the region can achieve global excellence.
"The good news is that we already have global players here that are showing us how to do that," said MacLauchlan, referring to the international success of the region's food companies such as McCain Foods Ltd. and Oxford Frozen Foods.
The economic future of Atlantic Canada could also lie in increasing the international export of food, said Karen Oldfield, the president and CEO of the Halifax Port Authority.
During the panel, Oldfield told the audience of a pilot project recently completed by her port.
In collaboration with CN Rail and a Montreal-based container company, the port authority transported grains products from Saskatchewan to Halifax, and then shipped that grain to overseas markets looking for Canadian goods. With Atlantic provinces now growing plenty of crops, such systems can allow for the export of these products to the world.
"This is a true Atlantic success story - we are taking soybean product from P.E.I., we are taking soybean product from Nova Scotia, and we are creating a whole new market for a whole new product. It's going to be one of the products for the future - food."
During the session, Oldfield also touched upon the immigration, and the need for Atlantic Canada to create a more welcoming environment for immigrants. She said Atlantic Canada is not doing enough to integrate immigrants into communities.
"It's easier to be a global business when you can draw upon the experience of your own workforce to help you to understand a particular market or culture," said Oldfield, speaking to the value of employees coming from abroad.
While the panel focused on the future of the region, Monique Collette, the senior advisor to the privy council office in Ottawa, spoke to the past success of the region.
Collette said one of the assets of Atlantic Canada is the ability of the region to bounce back. While Ontario continues to struggle with the breakdown of the manufacturing industry, Collette noted that Atlantic Canada is doing relatively well in recovering from the recession.
"We are a very resilient people, and resiliency is not given to everybody," Collette said.
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Province wants immigrants

Newfoundland and Labrador logoImage via WikipediaCompared with other provinces in Atlantic Canada, Newfoundland and Labrador is experiencing greater difficulty attracting immigrants. The provincial government’s Office of Immigration and Multiculturalism is looking to get communities in on the effort, including Gander.
Topics :
Statistics Canada , Office of Immigration and Multiculturalism , Newfoundland and Labrador , Canada , Nova Scotia
Jamie Valvasori, the central region’s representative for the office, met with the Town’s economic and social development committee on Aug. 23 to speak about efforts to retain immigrants in the area.
According to notes from the meeting, Mr. Valvasori said the province is attracting many professionals who choose to move to larger centres. His office is now working on ways to make communities more welcoming to immigrants faced with living in a new place.
The Town has committed to working with his office on hosting a three-day workshop focusing on creating a welcoming community through specific initiatives.
According to Statistics Canada, 565 immigrants came to Canada from July 1, 2008 to June 30, 2009. In the same time frame, the remaining three Atlantic Provinces welcomed many more immigrants. Nova Scotia attracted the most with 2,377, while New Brunswick welcomed 1,922 immigrants. Even Prince Edward Island, with almost one-quarter the population of Newfoundland and Labrador, managed to attract more immigrants – 1,793.
“While the numbers may be lower than other Atlantic provinces, we believe we’re seeing great progress.” - Minister Susan Sullivan
Susan Sullivan, Minister of Human Resources, Labour and Employment, said she could not speak to the approach those provinces are taking.
“We’ve chosen to focus on skilled individuals who will make an economic, social, and cultural contribution to the province,” said Minister Sullivan. “We’re looking for people who are able to make that contribution and also people who have demonstrated a strong interest in staying in the province, and we think this approach will serve the immigrants and our province well.”
A major component of that approach is the Provincial Nominee Program (PNP), which seeks to recruits immigrants with specialized skills that are also in demand. The minister said 53 per cent of immigrants that came through the program are living in St. John’s.
Numbers up
Since 2007, Minister Sullivan said immigration numbers have been increasing, moving from an average of 400 per year to over 600 in 2009 – with 700 expected in 2010.
“While the numbers may be lower than other Atlantic provinces, we believe we’re seeing great progress,” she said.
A Statistics Canada publication from February 2010 found Newfoundland and Labrador had the highest match rates in Canada for foreign-educated immigrants working in the field they were trained for at 60 per cent. Nova Scotia placed second in Canada with 40 per cent, while Prince Edward Island and New Brunswick were tied at fourth with 37 per cent. The Canadian average was 33 per cent for data collected in the 2006 Canadian census.
Minister Sullivan said this shows the province is a good option for immigrants looking to work in their chosen profession.
Rather than offer specific selling points as a province, she said the Office of Immigration and Multiculturalism is using immigrants already here to sell Newfoundland and Labrador to others who may consider making a move. Its website currently offers video testimonials.
“They’re really inspiring examples of why it is that people have chosen to come and then decide to stay here,” said the minister.
She said a low population density constitutes a major attraction for foreigners coming to Newfoundland and Labrador, as many only have experience living in crowded cities. The videos also show people extolling the virtues of living in a place with a lower crime rate.
The efforts to create welcoming communities is being spearheaded by employees at the regional offices, said Minister Sullivan, as becoming a part of the community goes a long way in ensuring an immigrant will stay in an area.
“The workshops engage key stakeholders in the community who have an interest in the topic,” she said, adding the Office of Immigration and Multiculturalism has already held a number of successful ones in other areas.
“What we’re learning form them is the stakeholders who’ve taken the opportunity to go and participate have all reported that these have exceptionally helped them in terms of understanding the immigration process, and helping those who come to settle into their communities.”
info@ganderbeacon.ca
By Andrew Robinson
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