Canada’s Conservative government said on Friday that it plans to fast-track the immigration process for skilled workers in high-demand occupations, drawing criticism from the country’s opposition leaders that the new rules are unfair.
Canadian Immigration Minister Jason Kenney said applications for immigrants in occupations such as health, skilled trades, finance, and resource extraction will be processed within six to 12 months compared with up to six years under the old system. Geochemists, speech language pathologists, university professors, plumbers and chefs would also be fast-tracked.
The minister also said that Canada will maintain its immigration levels, while countries like the United Kingdom and Australia are cutting back.
“The recent steps this government has taken to improve our immigration system will help ensure that Canada remains competitive internationally and responsive to labor market needs domestically,” Kenney said.
Opposition leaders argued the changes would create two classes of immigrants, leaving less-skilled workers stuck at the back of the line.
New Democrat immigration critic Olivia Chow called the government’s classification of high-demand jobs absurd.
“One on the list is financial services. Didn’t I just notice that there’s a huge number of people being laid off in the financial services?” Chow asked.
Chow also criticized the government’s plan to double the number of temporary foreign workers in five years, saying such a move would drive down wages.
“It’s bad for the Canadian economy and it’s bad for [the workers], because they cannot bring in their families and often are open to exploitation and abuse,” Chow said.
The Liberals drew parallels between the current reforms and an effort by the Conservative government of the 1950s to favor skilled workers — a move that created a rift between the government and some ethnic communities. The government of the time eventually backed away from those reforms.
Friday’s announcement came on the same day Canada’s opposition parties also criticized the Conservative government for failing to do enough to rescue the economy from the impacts of the global economic crisis. The parties are grappling with the idea of toppling the Conservative government and forming a coalition government.
The Liberals said they are considering introducing a motion tomorrow declaring no confidence in the minority Conservative government and proposing a governing coalition.
SEEKING CHANGE: A hospital worker said she did not vote in previous elections, but ‘now I can see that maybe my vote can change the system and the country’ Voting closed yesterday across the Solomon Islands in the south Pacific nation’s first general election since the government switched diplomatic allegiance from Taiwan to Beijing and struck a secret security pact that has raised fears of the Chinese navy gaining a foothold in the region. The Solomon Islands’ closer relationship with China and a troubled domestic economy weighed on voters’ minds as they cast their ballots. As many as 420,000 registered voters had their say across 50 national seats. For the first time, the national vote also coincided with elections for eight of the 10 local governments. Esther Maeluma cast her vote in the
Nearly half of China’s major cities are suffering “moderate to severe” levels of subsidence, putting millions of people at risk of flooding, especially as sea levels rise, according to a study of nationwide satellite data released yesterday. The authors of the paper, published by the journal Science, found that 45 percent of China’s urban land was sinking faster than 3mm per year, with 16 percent at more than 10mm per year, driven not only by declining water tables, but also the sheer weight of the built environment. With China’s urban population already in excess of 900 million people, “even a small portion
UNSETTLING IMAGES: The scene took place in front of TV crews covering the Trump trial, with a CNN anchor calling it an ‘emotional and unbelievably disturbing moment’ A man who doused himself in an accelerant and set himself on fire outside the courthouse where former US president Donald Trump is on trial has died, police said yesterday. The New York City Police Department (NYPD) said the man was declared dead by staff at an area hospital. The man was in Collect Pond Park at about 1:30pm on Friday when he took out pamphlets espousing conspiracy theories, tossed them around, then doused himself in an accelerant and set himself on fire, officials and witnesses said. A large number of police officers were nearby when it happened. Some officers and bystanders rushed
HYPOCRISY? The Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs yesterday asked whether Biden was talking about China or the US when he used the word ‘xenophobic’ US President Joe Biden on Wednesday called for a hike in steel tariffs on China, accusing Beijing of cheating as he spoke at a campaign event in Pennsylvania. Biden accused China of xenophobia, too, in a speech to union members in Pittsburgh. “They’re not competing, they’re cheating. They’re cheating and we’ve seen the damage here in America,” Biden said. Chinese steel companies “don’t need to worry about making a profit because the Chinese government is subsidizing them so heavily,” he said. Biden said he had called for the US Trade Representative to triple the tariff rates for Chinese steel and aluminum if Beijing was