Canadian Immigration News

Vancouver Sun
Labour shortage critical, official says

William Boei, Vancouver Sun

Published: Thursday, March 15, 2007

British Columbia faces a serious labour shortage that will go on for a decade or longer, and the province have to pull out all the stops to compete with the rest of the world for skilled workers, a Greater Vancouver Regional District forum was told Wednesday.

"We are in a death struggle, almost, for skilled workers, in every sector of the economy," said Keith Sashaw, president of the Vancouver Regional Construction Association, whose booming industry has been hit particularly hard.

No ease-up in labour shortage
Immigrants not matched with needed skills
By Adam Clayton
The Winnipeg Sun (Canada), February 8, 2007

http://winnipegsun.com/Business/2006/12/08/2686381-sun.html

Small and medium-sized business owners are concerned about a labour shortage and the federal immigration system isn't much help, according to a new report.

A report by the Canadian Federation of Independent Business released yesterday found 91% of labour shortages in the small to medium business market are in non-professional categories.

Meanwhile, 65% of economic immigrants -- those selected for their skills and ability to contribute to Canada's economy -- are professionals.

Cdns wants tighter immigration controls
By Kathleen Harris
The C News (Canada), January 17, 2007

http://cnews.canoe.ca/CNEWS/Canada/2007/01/16/3389318-sun.html

A majority of Canadians want tighter controls over the influx of immigrants and believe more must be done to better integrate the nation's newcomers.

A Sun Media poll conducted by Leger Marketing shows 57% think there should be greater scrutiny before citizenship is awarded, while only 3% say the rules should loosen up. Just over one-third believe current controls are sufficient. Leger VP Dave Scholz says that as a neighbour to the U.S., Canada is likely more 'paranoid' about security concerns in the wake of Sept. 11. But the figures also reflect a strong desire to target immigrants who will help build a better Canada. 'We want to make sure we have enough information, but we also want to make sure that this person is going to benefit Canada,' Scholz said.

Heed torture risk, Canada told

Refugee case judge assails government for ignoring rights warnings about Egypt

COLIN FREEZE - Globe and Mail, December 16, 2006.

TORONTO -- Canadian officials turned a blind eye to torture as they tried to deport a terrorism suspect to Egypt, a Federal Court judge ruled yesterday.

Madam Justice Danièle Tremblay-Lamer said officials in countries such as Egypt can't be trusted when they promise Western countries they won't mistreat deportees.

Canadian officials would be better served, the judge suggested, by giving more weight to the findings of groups such as Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch when they document evidence of torture.

SUSAN DELACOURT
OTTAWA BUREAU CHIEF, Toronto Star

OTTAWA — The federal government has moved a major step closer to making all Canadian passports contain biometric technology, similar to the identifying information to be contained in the new U.S. passcard system.

The move comes just a week before Prime Minister Stephen Harper is to meet U.S. President George W. Bush in Washington -- a meeting that will almost certainly include a progress report on where the two countries stand regarding a looming passport crackdown in the U.S.

The latest issue of the Canada Gazette, the government's official notice paper, contains several proposed changes to the formal rules governing passports, including two specific provisions for biometric data.

Tabling of Privacy Commissioner of Canada's 2005-06 Annual Report on the Privacy Act: Commissioner expresses concerns about public sector privacy protection

Ottawa, June 20, 2006 – Considerably more could be done to protect Canadians' personal information, especially with respect to information flowing across the border and a federal privacy law that simply isn't up to standard, according to Privacy Commissioner of Canada Jennifer Stoddart, whose 2005-2006 Annual Report on the Privacy Act was tabled today in Parliament.

The Privacy Act governs how federal departments and agencies handle Canadians' personal information.