Immigration System and Tory Changes: The Real Motive
Many readers will now be aware that the Harper government plans on making profound changes to Canada's immigration system.
That anyone knows at all is somewhat surprising, as the Tories tried to bury these important alterations deep within the 2008 Federal Budget.
Evidently, they didn't want to draw attention to their plans.
After studying the changes and assessing their impact, we can understand why the Tories would prefer to keep them secret.
The proposed changes not only emerge from a process that is sneaky - they represent changes to Canada's immigration policy that are unfair, misguided and ripe for corruption.
First, let's examine the process.
The proposed changes are meant to amend the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA).
But, they were introduced as part of Bill C-50, the Budget Implementation Bill.
Now, who would logically think that changes to an immigration statute would be found in a budget bill?
No-one.
The conclusion?
First, the federal Conservatives were hoping nobody would notice these proposed changes.
Second, consistent with the bullying behaviour for which Stephen Harper is now famous, the Tories hope that by combining these changes with a confidence bill on the budget, they can force them through with little opposition.
Given the Dion Liberals' cowardly refusal to vote against the Tories on any issue that might force an election they know they won't win, Mr. Harper has strategized that he can strong-arm these changes no matter how bad they are for our country, and our immigrant families.
But Mr. Harper has miscalculated.
He neglected to envision that the NDP would discover these changes, and stand strong against them. And he failed to account for the very loud resistance he is getting from Canada's immigrant communities.
The NDP's Critic on Immigration and Citizenship issues, MP Olivia Chow, has already served notice that she will introduce amendments to cancel the changes.
The NDP is doing so because the changes are simply wrong-headed.
And why is this?
Consider the impact of these amendments if they are approved.
The changes would give the federal Minister the power to hand-pick immigrants completely out of turn.
The Minister would be able to impose quotas, approve or reject applicants and facilitate queue jumping.
Applicants who applied yesterday could be approved over applicants who applied two years ago.
The changes would limit the ability of ordinary Canadians to sponsor and unite overseas family members on humanitarian and compassionate grounds.
The changes would give the Minister the power to deny visas to applicants who meet all of the necessary immigration criteria.
And the proposals would change Canada's immigration policy from one where immigrants are viewed as potential citizens brought here through permanent residency programs to one where immigrants are treated as economic units to be exploited through temporary visa arrangements
In short, the proposed changes eliminate transparency in the process, introduce subjectivity and favouritism into the system and increase the opportunity for corruption.
They make family unification more difficult.
They treat human beings as economic tools that can be sent home after they are used - instead of as new Canadians who can build lives in our nation.
Now, one might ask: why would the Conservatives do this? What could possibly be the rationale for such an obviously meritless policy?
One word: votes.
It is my theory that Stephen Harper is frustrated.
He has given away $13 billion dollars a year in budget surplus, bringing the federal coffers to the point of possible deficit.
He has massively cut taxes, including two cuts to the GST.
He has faced quite possibly the weakest Liberal leader - Stephane Dion - in most people's memory.
And he still can't get into majority territory.
So, I believe he is trying to grow voters - voters who will be loyal to the Conservative Party.
And what voters might be more loyal than immigrants who have been hand-selected, out of turn, for favoured treatment and quick immigration approval?
And remember: immigrants tend to settle in major urban areas, like Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver - precisely the areas that the Tories need votes.
Not convinced?
Consider this.
Immigration Minister Diane Finley claims the reason for these changes is that we need to get more immigrants here quicker to fill needed labour shortages, specifically mentioning doctors, nurses and other professionals.
But, Canada already has a surplus of immigrants here in Canada with these very credentials - but which are simply not being recognized!
Anyone with even a passing knowledge of Canada's current immigrant communities knows very well that the lack of credential recognition is one of the most major and pressing problems facing Canadian immigrants.
And that the answer to Canada's labour shortages is to start recognizing these talented and skilled immigrants, who have been granted entry on the basis of a points system for their education and skills - but who can't get work in their trained fields because Canada won't recognize their credentials.
So, if the goal really were to aid in Canada's labour shortage, the remedy would be to start recognizing the credentials of the immigrants already here - not to open the door to even more immigrants out of turn!
With respect, Ms. Finley's reason simply doesn't wash.
And that's why I, and many others, believe that there are other motives at work.
If Stephen Harper is half the brilliant strategist that some people think he is - trying to build voters who owe their very lives in Canada to the Conservative government would seem to fit that bill.
But it's wrong.
It's unfair.
And it's a gross distortion of a process that must be objective into one being used for crass political purposes.
We must speak out clearly against a plan that puts politics and economic interests ahead of human beings and their families.
The NDP has always stood strongly for an immigration policy that is fair, even-handed, compassionate and human-based.
We have a large country that can easily handle more new Canadians - as we all were, at some point.
We have both an international obligation and a domestic need for a progressive and efficient immigration system.
We need to put more resources into that system to make it faster, fairer and more effective in settling new Canadians into productive lives and careers.
The NDP believes we can accomplish this.
To start, we must increase staffing in overseas visa offices to deal with the unacceptable backlog of applications.
We should increase Canada's immigration target to 1% of population - 330,000 new residents to facilitate family unification and labour needs.
We need to develop better settlement supports, like helping with language training, cultural adjustment and swifter credential recognition to get immigrants working in their chosen fields, quicker.
Above all, the NDP will fight hard for an immigration policy that puts people and principle above politics.
And that, in our view, is the only right motive there is.
