Welcome to Bienvenue à Nova Scotia (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Atlantic Canada is in desperate need of economic and demographic revival, says one former New Brunswick premier, and the recent influx of refugees fleeing conflict in the Middle East presents a golden opportunity for the beleaguered region.
Frank McKenna knows that what he is proposing may raise a few eyebrows, and that there will be challenges to overcome, but the former provincial politician and ambassador to Washington is arguing for a new set of rules that require a certain number of refugees and immigrants to settle in the Atlantic provinces – and remain there for a set amount of time before receiving permanent residency status.
“You know, this is not a perfect idea,” McKenna told The West Block’s Tom Clark. “But if we don’t do that, we suffer a slow and lingering death.”
The population in the Atlantic region, on average, is about eight years older than that in Alberta, said McKenna, and health care costs have increased dramatically and exponentially as the population ages. Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, P.E.I. and Newfoundland and Labrador are desperate for young families and skilled workers.
“We’re closing rural schools. We’re closing rural hospitals. Our universities are desperate for students from outside the region. So we’re the canary in the coal mine for rural communities all across Canada.”
Asked about high unemployment in the region and a possible backlash from locals who will object to available jobs going to newcomers, McKenna acknowledged that’s a possible drawback. But new arrivals often create jobs as well, he noted, and they are accustomed to adapting to tough economic situations.
“They come from cultures where desperation is part of their everyday life. Quite frankly, we’ve gotten away from that to some extent in our region because we’re well supported with important programs, social programs, and we need new blood. We need new energy. We need a hint of that desperation from people who will help create other jobs.”
English: A view from the south of the University Hospital complex on the north campus of the University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
The Canadian province of Alberta will soon reopen its doors to newcomers who wish to settle in one of Canada’s most beautiful and vibrant provinces. The Alberta Immigrant Nominee Program (AINP), one of Canada’s Provincial Nominee Programs, will begin accepting new applications from January 27, 2016.
Alberta has not been accepting new applications to the AINP since August 27, 2015.
The AINP is split into three streams: the Employer-Driven Stream, the Strategic Recruitment Stream, and the Self-Employed Farmer Stream. All streams of the AINP are ‘base’ streams, meaning that they are not aligned with the federal Express Entry system.
Potential applicants should note that, in addition to seeking skilled new immigrants, Alberta is also looking for applicants in certain semi-skilled occupations. Furthermore, while a job offer is required for a number of AINP categories, candidates with prior work experience in Alberta and who have a valid trade certificate in a Compulsory or Optional Trade, as well as those in certain engineering occupations, may be eligible to apply.
The AINP is also beneficial to individuals who have completed their studies in Canada.
The AINP Employer-Driven Stream
The Employer-Driven Stream aims to attract candidates with a permanent, full-time job offer from an employer in Alberta. The stream is divided into three categories:
This category is for candidates with a permanent, full-time job offer from an employer in Alberta in a skilled occupation (NOC skill level 0, A, or B).
This category is for candidates who have recently graduated from a Canadian post-secondary institution and have a permanent, full-time job offer from an employer in Alberta in a NOC skill level O, A, B, or C occupation. Note that this category is open to candidates with job offers in semi-skilled, as well as skilled, occupations.
This category is for candidates who have a permanent, full-time job offer from an employer in Alberta in a semi-skilled occupation (NOC C or D) that is eligible under the AINP.
The AINP Strategic Recruitment Stream
The Strategic Recruitment Stream allows Alberta to attract newcomers who may benefit the provincial labour market over the long term. The stream is divided into three categories:
This category is for candidates who have a valid trade certificate in a Compulsory or Optional Trade in Alberta issued or recognized by Alberta Apprenticeship and Industry Training (AIT).
This category is for candidates who have credentials as an engineer, designer, or drafter and work experience in Alberta in an eligible engineering occupation, listed below:
This category is for candidates who have graduated from a recognized post-secondary institution in Alberta, are currently working in Alberta in an eligible OCCUPATION, and have a valid Post-Graduation Work Permit.
The AINP Self-Employed Farmer Stream
Given that one of the major industries in Alberta is agriculture and that Alberta is traditionally a province that promotes small- and medium-sized business activity, it is only natural that the AINP also has a Self-Employed Farmer Stream. Candidates for this stream must prove prior farm management skills, invest a minimum of CDN $500,000 of equity in a primary production farming business in Alberta, and submit a proposed business plan.
Read more at http://www.cicnews.com/2016/01/alberta-accepting-applications-immigration-canada-017039.html#rztALxwC7dSCFpxE.99
Read more at http://www.cicnews.com/2016/01/alberta-accepting-applications-immigration-canada-017039.html#rztALxwC7dSCFpxE.99
Photo of a sign in the Canada-United States border. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
On March 15, 2016, The Government of Canada will implement significant new entry requirements for those arriving by air. Currently, citizens of several countries require a Temporary Resident Visa (“TRV”) to enter Canada and can apply for the TRV through a Canadian Consulate, while citizens of visa-exempt countries may arrive at a Canadian border or airport without first applying for the TRV. Beginning March 15, 2016, most travelers, even from some visa-exempt countries, flying into or transiting through Canada will require an Electronic Travel Authorization (“eTA”) prior to boarding a flight to Canada. Travelers of all ages will require an eTA when they fly into Canada, including young children.
To apply for an eTA, individuals must have a valid passport, a credit card, a scanner, and an email address. In addition to biographical data, the online application form will gather information regarding criminal history, employment information, marital status, and confirmation of funds available for each individual’s stay in Canada. All applications are submitted online through an individualized MyCIC account created by the applicant. The Government of Canada will gather the information to pre-screen travelers’ admissibility to Canada.
The eTA application requires an online fee payment of $7.00 CAD. The eTA will electronically link to the passport and, once granted, will remain valid for a period of five years from the day on which it is issued to the applicant unless the individual’s passport or travel document is set to expire, the eTA is cancelled, or the individual applies for and receives a new eTA valid for a longer duration. Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (“IRCC”)’s website projects that most applicants can expect to receive an email response “within minutes” of applying.
The Price Building, in the old city of Quebec City. The building is the head office of the Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec and the official residence of the Premier of Québec (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
In our work around the world, we both do a lot of benchmarking – investment returns, operating efficiency, the usual things you see in corporate presentations. We often find ourselves mentally benchmarking the country we’re currently in against Canada – and Canada usually stacks up well. “Best practice” or “top quartile” is what would appear on the PowerPoint slides.
At the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, this week, there has been a lot of discussion about technological innovation, failed states, climate change, oil prices and slow growth – big issues playing out against a worldwide backdrop of intensifying ideological beliefs, polarizing identity politics, cultural intolerance and income inequalities. But amid these challenges, Canada represents a different, better path: a blueprint for a country that works. Because the world has a lot to learn from us, Canada has to stand up and speak out.
We may not have the global swagger some others do, but we have what many others wish they had: a successful, relatively harmonious and fair society, respectful and open to all. Canada’s confidence shouldn’t be affected by the price of oil or the value of the loonie, which go up and down. Our confidence should be grounded in who we are as a country.
There is much about our model that sets us apart. Here are three things worth highlighting.
Pragmatism
Canada faces many of the same economic issues as other countries today – slow growth, pressure on middle-income families – but Canadians made clear in the last federal election that they have little appetite for divisive rhetoric and a strong preference for practical, middle-of-the-road answers. We may be the only Western country left without a reactionary populist movement, left or right. By global standards, our politics may be dull, but they work.
We express Canadian pragmatism in so many places: our strong and relatively equal health-care system, our efficient and largely non-partisan system for redistributing income, our world-leading approach to retirement security. Take the latter, which is a time bomb for many countries. We’ve built a system that combines personal, corporate and public savings plans, including highly successful public pension funds. Why successful? Because we’ve allowed them to deliver their public mandate by working on private-sector principles. Today, these funds manage $1.1-trillion, triple what they managed in 2003, with 80 per cent of that growth coming from investment returns. They are among the world’s largest and best infrastructure and real-estate investors. Canada’s public pension funds are among our best-known global brands.
Public institutions
Look beyond the daily show in the House of Commons to the institutions, such as our brand of federalism, that enable diverse interests to work as a country. Look at the paralysis of the euro zone or the political dysfunction plaguing the United States to understand just how hard this can be.
Canadian federalism has allowed us to bridge wide differences and share wealth across regions. The process may be more cumbersome than we would like, but it has given us the tools to be more innovative in a world of changing needs. Its genius is how, by decentralizing, it fosters more pools of experimentation – solutions developed locally are shared nationally.
In a way, our brand of federalism is a manifestation of something deeper in our national temperament – our capacity for constructive dialogue. That’s rarer than you might think in a world dominated by one-way monologues. It’s one reason why we’ve made the compromises needed to build cities with a quality of life admired around the world. Two recently topped The Economist’s list of best places to live.
Inclusiveness
Canada remains an open society. Most leaders we meet view us as a gold standard in building a post-globalization society with a multiplicity of identities and a rejection of fear and “otherness.” Our capacity to foster co-existence is rare and increasingly important given both the migrations that are under way and the proximity of once-distant cultures.
We are also world leaders when it comes to opening our doors to qualified immigration candidates – and we do so without exaggerating security concerns. Canadian opinion polls show a majority in public support for the world’s highest immigration levels. No political party advocates cutting immigration. We should be proud that seven million of our 35 million citizens were born outside Canada, that the federal cabinet has as many women as men and that a few cabinet members arrived here not so long ago as virtual refugees.
None of this is to say that Canada is the promised land. There is work to do. Our pension funds need to think more creatively about how to invest in city infrastructure. On immigration, let’s step up language training and really accelerate foreign-credential recognition to expand the labour force and increase economic growth. We have to invest to rediversify an economy that has grown far too dependent on commodities. And of course, climate change – we have let others shape this debate for too long. There is a real opportunity for Canada to reassert itself as a leader in curbing greenhouse gas emissions, while still taking advantage of our natural resources. The fourth industrial revolution is one of the main themes at Davos this week. Let’s harness all that technology and innovation can offer to sell today’s energy and tomorrow’s new energy technologies.
There is no shortage of Canadian leadership opportunities: public education, health care, financial-system reform, taxation, medical innovation, free trade. We need to be good at these things, and when we excel, we need to make sure the world knows about it.
We are encouraged by the fresh leadership we see across the political spectrum and at various levels of government. These leaders seem committed to reasserting Canada’s place in the world, and they are not alone. Most business and social-sector leaders we meet in Canada are ready to do their part. What we need now is a new level of national ambition and confidence: Let’s stand up and be vocal about what we can contribute to solving the world’s challenges.
One in five of us were born outside this country. It’s not surprising. Canada has one of the most positive attitudes toward immigrants in the developed world. We lead in promoting rapid labour market integration, a common sense of belonging, and non-discrimination.
The Migrant Integration Policy Index (MIPI) ranked Canada sixth out of 38 countries in its 2014 annual survey — just behind Sweden, Portugal, New Zealand, Finland and Norway.
Being a world leader in integrating immigrants is not a recent phenomenon. Canada is the only country in the world that has welcomed nearly one per cent of its population (250,000) every year, for the past two decades.
We do not have an anti-immigration political party at any level of government. And we attract more newcomers per capita than any other country on the globe.
Our multicultural society makes newcomers feel welcome. No single ethnic, religious or racial group dominates the national dialogue. Newcomers are presented with a positive history of immigrant success. We are a young, tolerant country built by immigrants from all over the world.
Other G7 countries, such as Italy, Germany, France, and Great Britain, rank well behind Canada. But before we congratulate ourselves too readily we should consider the daunting challenges facing these and other European states.
Europe is changing. A few blocks from where my family frequently stays in Nice, France, a new has neighbourhood has sprung up. Walking through it is like entering another world — a world created by mass Muslim immigration.
The shop signs are in Arabic. The women wear head scarves. Indigenous French locals are nowhere to be seen. Idle men dominate the street scene. Unlike most of Canada’s Italian, Chinese, Greek and other ethnic enclaves, this neighbourhood has the feel of a religion-centric ghetto.
Muslim neighbourhoods like this one have grown up in the poorer parts of dozens of cities in Europe. Amsterdam, Marseilles, Stockholm and Birmingham are already one-fifth Muslim.
Paris is surrounded by suburban ghettos populated by over 1.7 million Muslims, mostly from Algeria and Morocco. Every year between 30,000 and 40,000 cars are set on fire in the outskirts of Paris and other French cities where second- and third-generation immigrants live in poverty.
In the past, Europeans have generally rejected criticism of Islam, maintaining immigrants of any faith would assimilate into a multicultural Europe. But in many countries that hasn’t happened.
A Pew Research Center study found 81 per cent of British Muslims considered themselves Muslims first and British citizens second. In France, Germany, and Spain, between 50 and 69 per cent of Muslims identified with their religious affiliation over their national identity.
The British Centre for Social Cohesion reported one-third of British Muslim students are in favour of a worldwide Islamic caliphate.
Some observers feel that integration has been hindered by Muslim leaders who interpret Islam as both a political ideology and a religion. Others maintain that by forcing assimilation, countries like France compel immigrants to make the impossible choice between their cultural identity and their new country.
That was the situation in 2014. Since then more than a million people from Syria, Somalia, Pakistan and Afghanistan — many of them Muslims — have reached Europe. It’s the biggest refugee influx since the Second World War. This latest migrant wave continues with no sign of easing, putting intense pressure on European Union countries to stem the flow and fashion more effective integration programs.
Canada’s commitment to take 25,000 Syrian refugees by the end of February, about 10 per cent of our normal annual intake of immigrants, seems a very modest challenge in comparison.
While Canada ranks high in newcomer integration, several recent developments are worrisome.
First, Canada lost MIPI points in 2014 over previous years. The recent delays and restrictions to family reunion and citizenship introduced by the Harper government are damaging. They undermine one of the basic strengths of our immigration model. Selected immigrants are supposed to arrive as permanent residents with equal rights to invest in their integration and quickly become full Canadian citizens.
Second, recent surveys say distinctly different things about our attitudes toward immigration.
A March Ekos poll found Canadians are becoming more fearful, less compassionate and less welcoming when it comes to immigration. Forty-six per cent of Canadians said too many immigrants are coming — up from 25 per cent in 2005. Stephen Harper tried unsuccessfully to tap into these negative sentiments during the October election.
A June survey by the Environics Institute provides part of the answer to why Justin Trudeau’s more welcoming immigration policies received wider support. Environics found attitudes have held steady or grown more positive over the last five years. Canadians continue to believe immigration is good for the economy. We are more confident about the country’s ability to manage refugees and the possible criminal element. Nearly 95 per cent felt a person born abroad is as likely to make good a citizen as someone born here.
Let’s hope the Environics poll reflects our attitudes, and that Trudeau rolls back Harper’s restrictive legislation so Canada can remain an immigrant integration example to the world.
— R. Michael Warren is a former corporate director, Ontario deputy minister, TTC chief general manager and Canada Post CEO. r.michael.warren@gmail.com