Liberals released their immigration platform
On September 30, 2019, the Liberal Party of Canada published its new election platform. In the immigration sphere, Liberals announced several important points. Grits promise to increase immigration levels, focusing on highly skilled workers. They also announced the plan to make the Atlantic Immigration Pilot (AIPP) permanent program and increase the program’s quota to 5,000 annually. In addition, Liberals want to launch the Municipal Nominee Program (MNP) that will function similarly to the Provincial Nominee Programs, allowing local communities, chambers of commerce, and local labour councils to directly sponsor permanent immigrants. The MNP will also be allocated 5,000 spots a year. Finally, if elected, the Grits promise to make applications for Canadian citizenship free.
#Election, #immigration_policy, #AIPP, #MNP, #citizenship, #Liberals
International education not an education program anymore, but an immigration program
According to data by IRCC, 572,000 international students have come to Canada from around the world and contributed $21.6 billion to the country’s economy so far this year. During the past 5 years, enrolment in Ontario colleges has increased up to 155%. During Stephen Harper’s government, the colleges lobbied the Conservative government to increase the number of international students. Many immigration experts consider international education in Canada as not an education program anymore, rather an immigration program. Most students are studying for permanent residence. It has nothing to do with learning. The average international student pays $14,466 annually as tuition fees, while a Canadian pay $3,742.
#international_students, student_immigration
Francophone immigration in a minority setting
Canada wants to attract more new French-speaking residents. The government even set a target of 4.4% Francophone immigration, but never reached it. This indicates a deeper problem. On the one hand, francophones who come to Quebec must learn English to find a job, a trend that favours the anglicization of the country. On the other hand, the resources available outside Quebec for Francophones are insufficient. In addition, the governments of Ontario, the largest province in Canada, and New Brunswick, the only officially bilingual province, have almost no ministers who speak French, which indicates a certain indifference to the Francophone immigration.
#Francophones, #immigration
6.7 times more Indian immigrants than Chinese immigrants in Canada
Canada’s immigration policy leans towards attracting more Indian immigrants. According to the federal Immigration Department, Canada brought in 92,000 new immigrants through the Express Entry system in 2018. This was a 41% increase compared to 2017, but the representation of countries was one-sided. The immigrants were mainly from India (41,675), constituting 45% of all immigrants going through the system. In comparison, only 6,248 Chinese immigrants succeeded in their immigration process, accounting for 6.8% of the total number. Canada’s current immigration policy also suggests that Indians may become Canada’s second-largest ethnic group in the next two to three decades, especially in the Greater Vancouver Area. Although people cannot conclude this is the intention of the US and Canadian governments, it is evident the Chinese community might be pushed out by the growing Indian community.
#immigration_levels, #India, #China
