Canada's Government Continues Consultations on Immigration Priorities With National Stakeholders
OTTAWA, ONTARIO, Aug 15, 2008 (MARKET WIRE via COMTEX) --
The Honourable Diane Finley, Minister of Citizenship and
Immigration, met today with national stakeholders from business,
industry, labour and non-governmental organizations to discuss
occupational priorities for immigration purposes.
This national round table was an opportunity to hear from key experts
from a national perspective. It was an important element of
cross-Canada consultation sessions with provinces, territories and
stakeholders, including ethnic and immigrant-serving organizations,
over the past month.
Today's consultations focused on identifying critical occupational
shortages in trades and professions across Canada, the role of
immigration in responding to them, and any barriers to foreign
credential accreditation. This information will help develop
instructions for immigration officers on occupations that are
identified for priority processing. The ministerial instructions, to
be issued this fall, will focus on applications in the federal
skilled worker category.
"There are shortages of workers in many professions and trades. These
broad consultations with stakeholders have provided us with a picture
of the most common and acute pressures across the country, and how
immigration can play a role in addressing them," said Minister
Finley. "Our government is committed to helping newcomers and their
families succeed when they come to Canada. Their success is our
success."
Following discussions with participants, the Minister emphasized the
importance of provincial and territorial initiatives to better
recognize foreign credentials in Canada. "We can't prioritize
occupations and professions in demand if there isn't the necessary
support and training available to help newcomers begin work in their
chosen fields," said Minister Finley.
The Minister reiterated that the instructions will not affect refugee
protection, nor are they intended to affect the government's
objectives for family reunification. In fact, Canada already gives
priority to applications from many family members, such as sponsored
spouses and dependants. Eighty percent of these cases are finalized
within eight months. "Reuniting families remains a priority for this
government," said Minister Finley. "We need to ensure that Canada
continues to balance the needs of our Canadian industries in terms of
labour shortages and family reunification for our newcomers."
As face to face meetings with all stakeholders were not feasible, the
public was invited to submit its input online. Citizenship and
Immigration Canada (CIC) received over 550 submissions. This
feedback, along with the input provided during the regional and
national round table consultations, will inform the development of
the ministerial instructions. Consultations were also held with Human
Resources and Social Development Canada and the Bank of Canada.
The instructions follow on 2008 budget commitments to modernize the
immigration system to respond to Canada's labour market needs, reduce
wait times for new applicants, and reduce the backlog of immigration
applications. The budget allocates $109 million over five years to
help meet these goals.
With this funding, CIC has begun recording occupational information
for applications in the current skilled worker backlog. The
Department will be referring applications of interest to the
provinces and territories for possible processing under the
Provincial Nominee Program. CIC is also working toward increasing
capacity and efficiency in missions with the largest backlogs,
centralizing the receipt of applications, and reconfirming the
intentions of applicants facing the longest wait times.
The instructions based on these consultations will be published in
the Canada Gazette and available on the CIC website at www.cic.gc.ca.
They will also be tabled in Parliament as part of the annual report
on immigration.
Contacts:
Citizenship and Immigration Canada
Minister's Office
Tim Vail
Press Secretary
613-954-1064
Citizenship and Immigration Canada
Media Relations Unit
Communications Branch
613-952-1650
CIC-Media-Relations@cic.gc.ca
SOURCE: Citizenship and Immigration Canada
mailto:CIC-Media-Relations@cic.gc.ca
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