Ministers join local oilsands discussion

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CAROL CHRISTIAN

Today staff

A handful of federal cabinet ministers were in town Wednesday getting a glimpse of the oilsands, some for the first time, to better arm them in defence of this area on a national and international front.

Hosted by the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers and its members, the ministers, including Fort McMurray MP Brian Jean, met key regional leaders for a roundtable discussion at MacDonald Island Park following tours of Syncrude Canada and Suncor Energy.

Following the roundtable, Minister of Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism Jason Kenney along with Minister of Public Works and Government Services and Minister for Status of Women Rona Ambrose and Minister of State of Foreign Affairs Diane Ablonczy spoke briefly with media while Finance Minister Jim Flaherty and Environment Minister Peter Kent slipped out.

Ambrose, minister for Northern Alberta, called it a "great roundtable" because the cabinet ministers heard from a variety of people including environmentalists, industry, and municipal and provincial government.

"We learned a lot about the importance of the oilsands," she added.

Key messages heard were environmental sustainability as well as issues like quality of life, transportation and accommodation, she added.

"All of it is around sustainability. A lot of the conversation was about quality of life and I think responsibility also; responsible stewardship and what we saw was a visible tangible commitment from industry to meet those goals."

Kenney acknowledged a lot of information was heard about the challenges of maintaining services and adequate infrastructure in an area of such explosive population and economic growth.

"We know about that in an abstract sense, but to come here and see the one major through road and to see the one rec centre and that kind of thing, it gives you the concrete sense of the challenges the community leadership are facing."

Reflecting on their tour of the oilsands, Kenney said it's something to walk on what was a tailings pond a few years ago that's now developing into a forest.

"It helps us to go back to parliament and around the world, and defend Canada's oilsands as an environmentally responsible production of energy. That's a really helpful personal experience for us."

CAPP spokesman Travis Davies said the tour was organized because oil and natural gas resources are a vitally important national asset, and it's important federal leaders have a good understanding of the resource and how industry is performing.

"Obviously, the best way to demonstrate performance is to get leaders on the ground at Canadian oil and gas facilities. The opportunity to learn first hand, and subsequent ability to make experienced-based policy decisions and speak with authority on an issue important to all Canadians is valued by our federal leaders," he added.

To criticism the federal government doesn't enforce its own acts in the oilsands, Kenney argued through its actions, the federal government has announced is intention to establish a federal framework for monitoring air and water quality in the region in cooperation with the province.

"We never do anything in a kind of high-handed unilateral fashion. Environment is a shared federal-provincial constitutional responsibility. We take that responsibility very seriously and we think that we can bring the specific scientific expertise of ... Environment Canada to the table here through a significant improvement, co-operating with industry in water and air quality monitoring."

Kenny pointed out that Kent will be announcing details about that plan in the near future.

With more than 20 Alberta MPs in the federal caucus and a prime minister from Alberta, the federal government is well aware of the Alberta perspective.

While the oilsands are often heralded in driving the Alberta economy, Kenney pointed out the oilsands developments constitute the future engine of the Canadian economy.

"We're talking in 25 years about over $2 trillion in economic growth estimated to be some $700 billion in federal and provincial government revenues. We want to pay for our future heath care and pensions, social programs, that revenue's got to come from somewhere; increasingly it will be coming from the Athabasca region from northern Alberta through the oilsands development."

The government, he added, is committed to explaining that to Canadian across country that the benefits aren't just here, they're right across the country.

Those explanations are also aimed at the opposition parties who don't seem to have the same understanding about how this development is so important to the Canada's future.

He noted that in the last election, all three opposition parties were opposed to the future of this industry in a significant way.

There was a lot of "bad mouthing about this industry and our government has consistently stood up in defence of the Alberta oilsands and we will continue to do that. Yes in an environmentally responsible way, but we will stand up for this incredible growth of our prosperity."

With predicted labour shortages, Kenney said Canada has is trying to fine tune its immigration program to ensure the country is attracting people who are capable of filling the jobs of the future including skilled trades such as welders and pipefitters in areas like Fort McMurray.

"Immigration alone is not the solution. That's one of the things that came up in the roundtable that we need to do a better job of getting Canadians from regions of high unemployment here and we need greater labour market mobility across the country. Part of that is the aboriginal population. So it's a multi-faceted solution to the labour market shortages."

carol.christian@fortmcmurraytoday.com

 

Related articles

• Ottawa aims to boost reputation of Alberta oilsands (thestar.com)
• Oilsands can be developed in a sustainable way: Oliver (ctv.ca)
• Ottawa to lay out plans for more oilsands environmental scrutiny (calgaryherald.com)
• Energy Minister visits Alberta oilsands (cbc.ca)

Canada Student Partners Program SPP Continues to Attract Indian Students

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(OPENPRESS) July 8, 2011 -- Until April 2009, there was a big concern among Canadian colleges and universities of not getting students from India as most of the visas were being rejected by the Canadian High Commission, New Delhi. The Student Partners Program (SPP) commonly termed as Students Partnership Program by the students and study abroad consultants in India was implemented in partnership between the Canadian High Commission and the Association of Canadian Community Colleges (ACCC) and is attracting a good number of students from all over India and is fast emerging as a preferred destination for higher education for overseas students not only from India but from the entire globe.

The number of Indian students enrolled in Canadian universities and educational institutions has steadily grown from 3,000 in 2008 to 18,500 in 2010, according to the Canadian High Commissioner, Stewart G Beck. Primarily, Indian students used to choose places like Vancouver in Canada because of its favourable nature, mild climate and the Indian community stronghold. But, now Indian students are breaking grounds and heading to colleges in Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba and other cold provinces. Also, Canada’s progressive immigration policies and employment opportunities is turning it into a favourable destination choice for Indian students. Canadian universities offer diverse programmes that range from Commerce to Astronomy, Biology to Fine Art, Media Studies to Theology. Currently, universities and educational institutions in Canada offer more than a 1000 undergraduate and graduate programmes.

The students are cautioned to submit applications on time by 01 August for September intake and by 01 December for January intake while applying under SPP (Student Partners Program). It needs to be noted that SPP students apply to the participating college rather than the program.

To elaborate, SPP was started as a pilot project with plans to test a model for expediting the student visa process and delivering higher approval rates while maintaining program integrity. All Study Permit application checklists have been revised and improved as a result of the SPP framework to help students make simpler applications and Canadian High Commission informed decisions.

Tejal Laul, Director of Kampus Landing a leading overseas education consultant from Gujarat says, “There is a northward trend on the number of Indian students showing interest in studying in Canada. SPP requires students to have IELTS scores only. TOEFL is not valid for filing student visa under SPP though the students are eligible to file under general category. Strangely, even the Canadian colleges and universities prefer IELTS and students with TOEFL score find very few choices. We have experienced almost 100% success rate with IELTS but somehow students filing under general category with TOEFL scores have been scrutinized closely by Canadian High Commission and even the brightest of the students have faced rejection. You are strongly advised to file under Student Partners Program and avoid filing with TOEFL scores under general category.”

Further, Tejal Laul says, “The quality of education is very good in all community colleges and one should not rush just to Toronto or Vancouver, there’s a lot of advantages studying at provinces in Quebec and Manitoba. The students’ Canada PR application is fast tracked if filed under Provincial Nominee Program. Colleges offer unique “co-operative education programmes” that allow students to work while studying. Apart from regular courses such as a Bachelor’s in Business Administration (Accounting/ Financial services) and Bachelor’s in Sciences, a few even offer new-age courses — Animal Health Technology, Geology, Financial Services Management, Office Administration Certificates, Basic Musicianship, Intercultural and International Studies, Professional Writing, Stagecraft, Performing and Fine Arts, Associate of Arts degree — to name a few. Students studying under government-funded institutions can get up to a three-year work permit, leading to permanent residency. Finance, banking and investment are the emerging fields in Canada and present a promising future in the country. Jobs in Computer Science offer good pay and there is ample job opportunity for talented and skilled professionals. Aerospace, Urban Transport, Microelectronics, Advanced Software, Hydroelectric and Nuclear Power, Lasers and Opto-electronics, Biotechnology, Food and Beverage Processing, Geomatics, Ocean and Environmental Industries are other lucrative courses on offer. Typically, most universities offer four-year undergraduate programmes. The degree awarded is general or specialised. An Honours (bacca-laureate) programme may be harder as more courses have to be completed in the same period of time, compared to a regular Bachelor’s programme in the same discipline. Community colleges and technical institutes in Canada offer programmes that enable students to get a job by meeting the needs of employers or industry.”

Regarding mature students applying under SPP, Tejal Laul says, “Canada welcomes mature students’ applications, one can file at the age of 35 but should have a genuine reason to study at this age in Canada. If the mature student is not able to provide ample of evidence, the application is more likely to be rejected. We have had several applications between 30 and 35 which have successfully received Canada student visas under SPP and are presently studying in Canada.”

On the question on ethics of study abroad consultants in India, Tejal Laul says, “The study abroad consulting industry in India is not regulated like China and UAE where study abroad consultant needs a license by the Ministry of Education to operate. The Indian Government needs to regulate the study abroad consulting industry and save hundreds from being duped by unscrupulous agents.”

She adds, “After successfully experimenting SPP in India, Canadian government has initiated the Student Partners program SPP in China. There are already 50,000 students from China studying in Canada and the number is expected to grow tremendously.”

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Professional Free Press Release News Wire

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New immigrants Canada needs are already here

Like many developed nations, Canada is counting on immigration to help mitigate the impacts of an aging population. The global competition for skilled workers is intense as each nation markets itself as the ideal destination for immigrants to relocate. But even if Canada wins that contest and persuades candidates with the right qualifications to fill labour shortages to come here, there's no guarantee they will be able to successfully adjust to life in Canada.

But what if they have already shown that they can?

In Tuesday's editorial, we said some of the people we're looking for are already here. There are about 90,000 international students attending Canadian universities, taking advanced courses in the subject areas crucial to Canada's economic growth and prosperity.

They have already adopted the Canadian lifestyle, have mastered English or French, and have become familiar with Canada's cultural norms. In 2009, there were 49,905 students from China on study permits in Canada, as well as 25,871 from South Korea and 9,570 from India.

In British Columbia alone, there are 25,000 international students attending public post-secondary institutions, accounting for about six per cent of total enrolment. Add those attending private institutions and those studying English as a second language and the number rises to 140,000.

Not only do these students represent a potential pool of human capital, but they contribute to the economy as they learn. In B.C., international education provides an estimated $1.6 billion to gross domestic product and sustains 21,000 jobs.

Unlike Canadian students, international students receive no subsidies and pay the full retail price for their education.

In fact, many foreign governments pay their students to study here. Indeed, international students are helping Canadian universities balance their budgets.

Dalhousie University in Halifax, for example, recently announced that it would sell 10 vacant first-year places at its medical school to students from Saudi Arabia for $75,000 annually. The Saudi students are expected to return home; however, Canada could make a compelling case for them to stay by offering hospital residencies and a fast track to citizenship.

The benefit to Canada of keeping the foreign doctors, engineers, lawyers, scientists, economists and entrepreneurs emerging from Canadian universities can hardly be overstated. Gone are the issues of recognizing foreign credentials, language barriers and cultural differences. Moreover, either the students or the governments of their countries of origin, rather than Canadian taxpayers, have financed their training.

The federal government has taken some baby steps in the right direction by making it easier for international graduates to obtain a threeyear work permit on completion of their program, allowing them to work for any Canadian employer in any industry, without a requirement that they have a job at the time of their application.

The government could take it one step further and invite applications for permanent residence, leading to citizenship. The federal and provincial governments should also ensure that universities have sufficient capacity to accept as many international students as are willing to come, while ensuring domestic enrolment is not compromised.

Studies have shown that younger, educated immigrants will not face the impediments that have prevented older skilled immigrants from achieving success in Canada, but will be able to integrate well into Canadian society and go on to make a comfortable living.

Canada must continue to recruit students from around the world, as other nations do, and market our educational institutions just as aggressively as our traditional exports.

But recruitment is expensive and the return on investment will be greater if we can convince international students already studying here that Canada could be, and should be, their permanent home.

© Copyright (c) The Vancouver Sun

Read more: http://www.vancouversun.com/life/immigrants+Canada+needs+already+here/5056666/story.html#ixzz1RUSn5kME

Immigration consultants, lawyers, and other representatives: Who can represent you

Authorized immigration consultants, lawyers, Québec notaries, and paralegals regulated by a law society are people who can offer immigration advice to applicants. Some applicants may choose to use such a representative to act on their behalf with Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC), the Immigration and Refugee Board or the Canada Border Services Agency.

There are two types of immigration representatives: paid and unpaid.

Paid immigration representatives

Only the following people may charge a fee or receive any other type of consideration, to represent or advise you in connection with a Canadian immigration proceeding or application:

• lawyers and paralegals who are members in good standing of a Canadian provincial or territorial law society
• Notaries who are members in good standing of the Chambre des notaires du Québec, and
• Immigration consultants who are members in good standing of the Immigration Consultants of Canada Regulatory Council

The Government of Canada will not deal with non-authorized immigration representatives who charge for their services.

NEW: Other people who offer paid immigration advice

With the coming into force of Bill C-35, anyone who provides paid advice prior to the filing of an application or the commencement of a proceeding will need to be an authorized representative. This means that some third parties who were not formerly required to be recognized to provide paid advice will now have to refer people to an authorized representative or become authorized themselves. Some examples of paid advice or representation that will now be captured through the implementation of Bill C-35 include:

• representing the applicant during an immigration proceeding by speaking on their behalf.
• providing guidance to a client on how to select the best immigration stream and complete the appropriate forms.

Unpaid immigration third parties

Unpaid third parties, such as family members, friends, non-governmental or religious organizations will still be allowed to act on your behalf.

To protect your privacy, CIC will not share any of your personal information with your consultant, lawyer, and other representative unless you provide your written consent using the Use of a Representative (IMM 5476)form.

Other people who offer immigration advice or assistance

People who provide immigration-related advice or assistance for a fee before the application is filed are not obliged to be authorized consultants. However, be aware that non-authorized consultants, lawyers, and other representatives or advisors are not regulated. This means that they may not have adequate knowledge or training. It also means that you cannot seek help from the professional bodies (that is, the law societies, ICCRC, etc.) if that person provides you with the wrong advice or behaves in an unprofessional way.

THE SEVEN TOP TIPS FOR GETTING HIRED LONG DISTANCE

Source: MuchmorCanada

By now you’ve read every bit of advice that explains how to make yourself more attractive to employers. You know to clean up your online profiles, update your résumé, practice your interview answers, and network. But what if you’re looking for a job in a different time zone?

Long-distance job hunts bring with them a special set of requirements that can seem daunting at first, but aren’t all that much worse than a regular job search. With a little planning, you can conduct a long-distance job search that will land you a job in any city you want.

Choose locations

Hunting for a job in a single city is difficult. Hunting for one in all 50 states is virtually impossible. Rather than approach your job search as a nationwide Easter egg hunt, decide what cities you want to focus on. Although you might be open to any location that will offer you a job, you should make a list of five or 10 cities where you can see yourself working. For example if you hate to drive and love cold winters, then you should probably cross Los Angeles off of your list.

Know the job market

When you’re looking at potential locations for your job search, do some research on the local economy. Not all cities offer the same opportunities. Although you know that local unemployment rates differ from city to city, remember that industry vitality is just as diverse. One city might have a low unemployment rate, but your industry isn’t necessarily enjoying the same boom. Look at data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics and peruse newspapers for localized information.

Use your network

The glory of social media is that networks aren’t confined by geography anymore. Look at your Facebook friends and you probably know people in dozens of states, if not countries. Use your contacts from all of your social media profiles to publicize your job search and ask for any information that could guide you toward the right opportunity. When it comes to job hunting, you can’t ever have too many people looking for jobs on your behalf.

Brush up on your phone skills

Phone interviews typically come before any in-person interview, but the likelihood of them increases greatly when you’re searching long distance. In most cases, employers won’t expect you to fly out for a first-round interview, so a phone interview is most common, and you shouldn’t take it lightly. Practice speaking at a calm pace, be certain your phone signal is strong and do a few dry runs with a friend.

Perhaps most importantly, job seekers are often afraid to appear impolite when interviewers call and say, “Sure, I can talk right now.” If you are caught off guard or if you are in the middle of feeding your children and doing laundry, you can be honest. Even if you ask for 15 minutes to go to a quieter room, you want to create the best setting for your interview.

Decide if you’ll travel for an interview

Sometimes you’ll get to a second or third round of interviews when the employer wants to meet you in person. Sometimes the company pays for travel, but other times they don’t. Set a few ground rules for yourself in order to determine what opportunities you consider worth your time and money. Also, if asked to travel, find out as much information as possible about so that you can make the arrangements that work best for you. See what dates are available (so you can book the most affordable flight) and how long the process takes (so you know if you can fly home that day and save hotel fare). You want to know as much as possible beforehand so you can make the most informed decision possible.

Travel

Relocating for a job is a big move that can pay off for your career, but it can also require sacrifices. Leaving behind your friends, paying for the move, and spending the time on the move itself all require a lot of energy. You want to be certain the city you’re moving to is worth it, so if you haven’t visited in a while or ever, find a way to visit before you move. Not only will you find out if the culture is right for you, but you will also get a better idea of the layout. You could realize that you should extend your job search to nearby suburbs or towns, which can open up a new set of possibilities.

Know your own relocation plan

The most important part of your long-distance job search is having a flexible game plan. Without a job offer, you might not have a definitive move date, but you should have an idea of what is possible in case you get an offer. Employers know you’re not a local candidate, so they will want to know how soon you can start and when you plan to be in the city.

If you get an offer and then say you need time to put your house on the market, find a good school for your children, and decide where you want to live, you’ll probably lose out on the opportunity. Most employers understand the complexity of a long-distance job search, but they don’t have six months to wait for you, either. A flexible plan allows you and the employer to negotiate a mutually agreeable start date while also showing that you’re serious about relocating.

Writers Bio: Anthony Balderrama is a writer and blogger for CareerBuilder.com and its job blog, The Work Buzz. He researches and writes about job search strategy, career management, hiring trends and workplace issues.

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Quebec growth slows, but the outlook is brightening

BY JAY BRYAN, THE GAZETTE JULY 7, 2011

 

 

Quebec's economic growth will slow this year, but it's expected to remain healthy enough to keep unemployment edging down and to lay the foundation for more robust expansion next year.

That's the latest forecast from Scotia Capital, where economist Alex Koustas sees a number of strengths that will help to soften the negative impact of tax increases, slowing consumer spending and the province's long-standing difficulty in attracting skilled immigrants.

The rising tax burden, however, is "really going to cause a bit of a drag" on growth, Koustas said yesterday. New taxes will pull $2.7 billion out of Quebecers' pockets this year in the form of health levies and increases in the provincial sales tax and gasoline tax.

All these will rise again next year, boosting the total cost to taxpayers in 2012 to $4.2 billion, according to provincial finance department estimates.

The dampening impact of these tax hikes on consumer spending, combined with a slowdown in Quebec's important U.S. export market, will leave the province with growth of just 2.3 per cent this year, the country's slowest outside Atlantic Canada.

Ontario, where the big auto-manufacturing sector is still rebounding from a disastrous slump during the recession, will do a little better than Quebec this year, growing by 2.5 per cent.

But the growth champions will be in Western Canada, where rising values for oil, potash and other resource products will help Alberta to expand by 4.2 per cent, Saskatchewan by 3.7 per cent and British Columbia by 2.9 per cent.

However, Quebec's performance still has a number of bright spots. A key one is the unemployment rate, which dipped below Ontario's in the recession year of 2009 for the first time in 30 years.

Back then, this looked as if it might be a temporary blip caused as much by the nearcollapse of Ontario's automakers as by Quebec's job creation.

on provincial economy

But the Quebec advantage has persisted, reinforced by the province's heavy spending on roads and power projects.

Unemployment in Quebec will fall to an average of 7.7 per cent this year from 8.0 per cent in 2010. This year's jobless rate will be higher than the national average of 7.5 per cent, but it remains below Ontario's forecast 8.1 per cent.

And now, a number of big Quebec industries are showing signs of strong expansion, suggesting that growth in the province will strengthen in 2012.

A key example is information technology, which accounts for more than five per cent of the provincial economy.

After hiring in this sector had stagnated during most of the past decade, it's been ramping up this year, Koustas said.

The prospects for further expansion are helped by a growing flow of venture capital, where Koustas said Quebec ranks among the top five or six destinations in North America.

Another keystone industry is aerospace manufacturing, whose turnaround is finally gaining momentum.

Orders for everything from business jets to components like flight simulators and landing gear have been rising.

This should be translated into actual shipments by late this year, bringing a positive contribution to economic growth in 2012.

Less visibly to those of us in Montreal, mining is becoming "one of the pacesetters for growth" in Quebec, said Koustas in his forecast:

"Multibillion-dollar investments are in play in the northern regions of the province, with gold and ironore mining set to make significant contributions to the economy. Mining investment and exploration have nearly doubled since 2005."

And finally, the cross-Canada cooling in home construction is being more than offset in Quebec by new projects in the industrial, mining and utility sectors, leaving the overall construction sector enjoying robust health.

Indeed, says the report, "the construction industry in Quebec finds itself in its best position since the 1970s, having grown by over 50 per cent since 2000," or faster than most of the province's other industries.

Over the longer run, though, Koustas noted that it remains "kind of worrisome" that Quebec still fails to attract many immigrants, leaving it vulnerable to stagnating growth as its workforce ages and begins drawing public pensions.

By far the largest chunk of Canada's international immigrants settle in Ontario, while in Quebec "the influx of talented workers is not exactly what you'd want it to be."

jbryan@ montrealgazette.com

© Copyright (c) The Montreal Gazette

Read more:http://www.montrealgazette.com/business/Quebec+growth+slows+outlook+brightening/5062246/story.html#ixzz1RSG4OafT

Near 50 per cent increase to online Sask. jobs

Global Saskatoon: Tuesday, July 5, 2011

Saskatchewan employers continue to create job opportunities in huge numbers, even on the web.

Photo Credit: -, Global Saskatoon

SaskJobs.ca website experiences its second straight month of over 13-thousand job posts. The website saw an approximate 50 per cent increase over June, 2010.

Rob Norris, Advanced Education, Employment and Immigration Minister, said “employers in every corner of the province continue to open the doors of opportunity for Saskatchewan people.”

Employers from 327 Saskatchewan communities posted over 67-thousand job opportunities on the Saskatchewan website between January and June. This shows an increase of over 13-thousand over the same period last year.

“We already have the lowest unemployment rate in the country, and with a growing number of job prospects, people from across Canada and around the world are looking at Saskatchewan as a great place to live, work and raise a family.”

The trades and primary industry categories accounted for more than a third of the overall total for June.

SaskJobs.ca is Saskatchewan’s largest job-matching website. The site provides job posting services free of charge for employers across the province and free resume posting for job seekers from around the world.

© Copyright (c) Shaw Media Inc.

Newcomer program proves popular

SUMMERSIDE - Immigration numbers to Summerside appear to be on the rise and the P.E.I. Association for Newcomers to Canada is working with the city to integrate and retain these people.

The city is prepared to launch its new economic development strategy that will set the direction Summerside will take over the next five years. One of the major components of that strategy is immigration.

Getting skilled immigrants to the community is one thing. Keeping them here is another.

The city has partnered with the P.E.I Association for Newcomers to Canada's Retention Integration Committee for Health (RICH) and the provincial Health Department for a pilot project to attract health professionals to the area.

Belinda Wood is the integration and retention officer for the Summerside program. She said it has already expanded to more that just the health field.

"It's growing amazingly," Wood said. "My main mandate was to work with health professionals, but it's more immigration and citizenship and getting their sponsorships for bringing family members over. That's really taking off. That's taking up a lot of the time right now. We're getting more immigrants coming into Summerside and I guess they expect there's going to be a lot more coming."

Wood said she still works with the health professions, too. She said if they come here and have a job to go they don't really need a lot.

"It's mostly working with their families to help them get settled because if the families aren't happy the doctors aren't going to stay," she said. "One of the challenges is they're so polite and they agree to everything and then you find out that they didn't have this and they didn't have that. Its just basic things like where do I get my hydro? Where do I get my cable, phone, all of those kinds of things. Then there are activities, schools."

She said through the Charlottetown office of the P.E.I. Association of Newcomers to Canada, staff travel to Summerside to put on presentations to help with diversity and to educate the people who are here now to assist and understand.

"A lot of times there are misconceptions with what people think they know and what they find out when they actually talk to people from other countries. There are lots of judgments made sometimes so once they've had opportunities to talk with different people they have a different outlook. That's kind of what our job is - to bring that education (immigrants have) here as well as help them out."

Wood said there is a misconception out there that immigrants are coming to this country to take jobs away from Canadians.

"That's not true," she said. "They're bringing talents that are not here. They're also filling jobs that we don't want. So, they're filling the void and they wouldn't be able to come here if they couldn't do that."

She said government requires that immigrants who are coming to Canada have a job or will be able to fill an existing need in the labour market.

Wood has only been on the job for two months and it's a part-time two-day-a-week position at the present time. Federal funding is being sought to make it full time. But already she has 30 cases on the go in the Summerside area.

"Every week my calendar is filled with appointments to meet with people. Sometimes I'm three weeks ahead booking people

Quebec City, Montreal 'most livable'; Vancouver highest cost of living: survey

Image by Michael McDonough via Flickr

Vancouver may be the "nicest" city, according to a new survey, but when it comes to livability, major cities in la belle province take top marks.

The recent study commissioned by the Montreal-based Association for Canadian Studies found Quebec City and Montreal outrank other cities in Canada when it comes to cost of living, culture, shopping and meeting people.

According to the survey, a quarter of Quebec City residents said the cost of living in their city was excellent, while another 70 per cent described it as good.

Montreal came second in the category with 16 per cent describing it as excellent and 65 per cent saying it was good.

While an earlier Postmedia News report indicated that a quarter of all Canadians had chosen Vancouver as the overall "nicest city in Canada," association executive director Jack Jedwab said it ranked dead last when it came to cost of living, with 57 per cent of respondents describing it as poor.

"There's a funny phenomenon in Vancouver, there's not a lot of people in the middle," he said, noting few Vancouverites described the lost of living as good, let along excellent.

"It's as though there's a big income split in that city. That's what I would think explains that discrepancy."

The Greater Toronto Area, Edmonton and Calgary rounded out the list of least affordable cities to live.

When it came to cultural activities, more than 95 per cent of Montreal and Quebec City residents rated theirs as excellent or good and they were also the most likely to describe their cities as excellent places to meet people and make friends.

Meanwhile, a fifth of Ottawa residents said their city was a bad place to meet people and make friends.

Montreal also earned top marks for shopping with 67 per cent describing it as excellent, followed by Edmonton at 62 per cent, Calgary at 51 per cent and Quebec City at 49 per cent.

People in Toronto (15 per cent), Calgary (14 per cent) and Edmonton (13 per cent) were among the most likely to describe their cities as lousy places to take in cultural activities.

On the subject of job opportunities, Calgarians were most satisfied, with half describing them as excellent and more than a third describing them as good. Quebec City came a close second with 47.6 per cent saying excellent but another 42.9 per cent describing them as good.

A whopping 36 per cent of Torontonians rated job opportunities in their city as poor, followed by 29 per cent of Ottawa residents and 25 per cent of Vancouver residents.

While all Quebec City residents described their city as either excellent or good for raising children — taking the top spot among seven cities — Jedwab was surprised to find Montreal at the bottom of the list in this category.

Despite the province's much touted $7-a-day child care program and overall commitment to children and youth, just 23 per cent of Montreal residents said their city was an excellent place to raise kids.

Some 61 per cent said it was good but more than 16 per cent described it as poor — the largest number of any city.

Quebec City, Vancouver, Ottawa and Montreal earned top marks for recreation and outdoor activity, while Toronto, Quebec City and Vancouver did well for climate.

"I think overall, Toronto is not a big winner on this thing if we're going to look for some big winner," Jedwab concluded.

"Montreal, I think, comes across fairly strong in this. Vancouver still does reasonably well, it is just clearly a very pricey place to live. Beauty comes at a cost."

The survey of 1,513 Canadians was conducted last month via web panel by Leger Marketing. An equivalent telephone survey would have a margin of error of 2.9 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.

tcohen@postmedia.com

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Canada offers hope for undocumented workers in USA.

by Ivy Guevara, ABS-CBN News North America

Posted at 07/04/2011 3:03 PM | Updated as of 07/04/2011 3:03 PM

LOS ANGELES, California – Filipino nurses in the United States are now having trouble getting jobs and attaining legal status. But Canada is offering new hope for undocumented workers in the US.
One registered nurse in the US has lived in the country for almost 10 years. He has kept his status legal through a working visa and has earned a nursing degree.
But he was denied a permanent residency and is now worrying about his undocumented status.
“There’s this anxiety looming above me, that if I get caught, there’s a possibility of me going back home and losing everything I’ve worked for,” he said.
He lost his high-paying hospital job since losing his legal status last year. But he is still able to work for a company where his skills weigh more than anything else.
But his top priority is still to get his legal status back and once again work as a nurse.
He has other options – get married or apply for permanent residency in Canada.
Canadian immigration law says that undocumented status in the US will not affect one’s immigration in Canada. An applicant also does not need a relative or an employer in Canada to qualify as an immigrant.
But giving up on an American dream is not easy.
“I do hope that somewhere along the way, they would come up with a system that will grant legal status to this people. I think I worked hard enough to deserve my right to be here,” he added.
More hope for the undocumented immigrants will now come in the form of the recently introduced Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act of 2011.

For more information visit www,nexuscanadaimmigration.com

Chinese immigrants transforming P.E.I.’s cultural landscape

Kathryn Blaze Carlson  Jul 3, 2011 – 8:00 AM ET | Last Updated: Jul 2, 2011 10:58 AM ET

When a Chinese immigrant visits Brown’s Volkswagen in Charlottetown, general manager Skip Rudderham is prepared: He has interpreters on speed-dial and bilingual business cards. Prince Edward Island, with its reputation of homogeneity and conservatism, may not seem the likeliest province to require such measures, but require them it does: Chinese immigration is transforming the island both culturally and economically.

“We would quite literally hire every qualified [Chinese] person we could get our hands on,” said Mr. Rudderham. “Our Chinese clientele is large enough that we could keep this person busy basically dealing with that clientele alone.”

The Brown’s Volkswagen experience is echoed elsewhere on P.E.I. — a small province once notorious for its “strong cultural norm of sameness” and better known as the rural home of the white, carrot-haired Anne of Green Gables.

When Kate Middleton, who reportedly adores the Lucy Maud Montgomery series, descends upon the province for “something of a sentimental journey” during her Royal visit to Canada this weekend, she will see a remarkably different P.E.I. than the one she has read about.

“You go through some of our schools now, and I joke that you think you’re in downtown Toronto,” said Premier Robert Ghiz, the son of Lebanese-Canadian Joe Ghiz, himself Canada’s first non-European premier. “You’re seeing cultural diversity in our hallways.”

Since the province started recruiting skilled and affluent immigrants through its Provincial Nominee Program in 2001, upward of 10,000 newcomers have called P.E.I. home. But while the province of just 143,200 is undergoing a metamorphosis at the behest of immigration generally, it is immigration from a land of nearly 1,337,000,000 in particular that is driving the novel shift.

China has been the chief source of immigration to P.E.I. for the past five years, with nearly 2,400 newcomers arriving between 2006 and 2009 alone, according to the province’s Population Secretariat. Most of those newcomers at least initially settled in Charlottetown, where the population was just 32,000 at the time of the census in 2006.

NP

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There is some discomfort — “I think there are mixed feelings on the island; some people are welcoming, but the older generation is maybe a bit less so,” long-time Charlottetown resident Florence McInnis says — but most community leaders say Islanders have adjusted. There has been no spike in race-based complaints to the province’s human rights commission, and the head of the Prince Edward Island Association for Newcomers struggled to recall any clashes between clients and Islanders.

“The acceptance has been remarkably smooth,” said Craig Mackie, executive director of the association. “People get it — they get that we need immigrants, that the Boomers are getting old and retiring and we need new people in here with new skills.”

That fact has not been lost on the government, which is looking to counter a natural-population-growth rate that has shrunk to almost zero. Provincial spending on resettlement programs doubled to more than $4.2-million between 2008 and 2009, and it has paid off: P.E.I’s population rose by nearly 400 in the first quarter of this year, making it the only Atlantic Canada province to see an increase.

Provincial education officials have established an intake team to assess students’ language proficiency before registering them at the appropriate grade level. The team, which also contracts tutors to teach the children, got so busy after it was struck in 2007 that the staff grew from six to 29 people in just three years.

The influx has meant adjustments elsewhere, too. The Bank of Montreal last year added Mandarin to its automatic teller machines in Charlottetown, and a spokesperson said the bank has seen “dramatic growth” in its Chinese clientele since hiring two Chinese employees in May 2010. A realtor who saw a surge in Chinese clients launched the province’s first English-Mandarin newspaper last month, and Charlottetown recently gleaned its first Asian tea house.

“People think we’re a little old-fashioned — we’re the birthplace of Confederation, we’re still fishing and farming, we’re the last province to bring in Sunday shopping,” Mr. Ghiz said. “But I say the opposite.”

In March, the city hosted its inaugural Chinese Islanders Business Summit, which was co-sponsored by Brown’s Volkswagen and attracted more than 250 Chinese immigrants eager to invest in island companies.

“The only way to make [these Chinese immigrants] stay in the province is to show them the business opportunities here,” said summit host and entrepreneur Frank Zhou, 32, who immigrated to P.E.I. from Beijing through the federal-provincial nominee program seven years ago.

Like thousands of others who arrived before the program was amended this year, Mr. Zhou and his wife, Sherry, had their visa application expedited after proving they were willing and capable of investing $200,000 in a P.E.I. business. Nominees were also required to pay a $25,000 good faith deposit, which is returned after a year of living in the province.

While Mr. Rudderham said the economic impact of the province’s strategic immigration policy “cannot be understated” — new car sales at his dealership have doubled since 2008, he said — the program has not been without its controversy. Before the first round of the federal-provincial nominee program expired on Sept. 2, 2008, the province rushed through nearly 2,000 applicants. Questions later arose about the quality of companies approved for investment, and there were allegations that companies owned by MLAs and senior civil servants were favoured.

An online petition calling for a public inquiry was launched in 2009, and it has since gleaned nearly 200 signatures, including one from a woman who said “people on this island face many challenges with food prices rising, the cost of living on P.E.I. is getting out of hand.”

Ms. McInnis, a single mother on a budget, said she, too, has noticed food prices climbing, especially when it comes to the basics.

“A few years ago, a loaf of bread used to be $1.99, but now it’s more like $2.49,” she said. “[The immigration surge] is not the only factor, but it might contribute.”

In February, the province and Citizenship and Immigration Canada announced a revamped nominee program, which will cap nominations at 400 for this year. Under the new rules, immigrants will also have the choice of buying a one-third ownership in a company or investing $1-million for five years as a loan.

The immigrants arriving to the island through the nominee program are for the most part different from the majority of those who arrived to cities such as Toronto and Vancouver in the late 1990s: The latter influx of predominantly Cantonese-speaking newcomers came from Hong Kong on the heels of China’s repatriation of the island, while this latest surge of predominantly Mandarin-speaking newcomers to P.E.I. comes amid economic growth in mainland China.

“Once the economy got better, and once people’s pockets got deeper, they wanted to explore opportunities outside China,” said Mr. Zhou, president of Sunrise Group, a software development and consulting firm with offices on P.E.I. and in Shanghai and Beijing.

The majority of principal applicants to the nominee program are well-educated, boast extensive business backgrounds and have a genuine interest in learning English, said Mr. Mackie, of the P.E.I. Association for Newcomers, which recently hosted its first mah-jong tournament in Charlottetown. He said he does not foresee a Chinatown emerging in the capital city soon — or ever.

“If you look at the history of the country, people who are economically challenged have tended to move into neighbourhoods where the cost of living is lower,” he said. “But we’re talking about people who can afford to buy good homes and choose where they want to live.”

Hamish Redpath, a realtor who recently launched a monthly bilingual publication called Ni Hao PEI (Mandarin for “Hello P.E.I.”), said he regularly shows homes to Chinese newcomers at prices ranging between $400,000 to $1.5-million. He said the Chinese community is peppered throughout Charlottetown and across the bridges in communities such as Stratford and Cornwall.

“They’re interested in beautiful homes, with water views or right on the waterfront,” Mr. Redpath said, adding that he serves Chinese families looking for more modest abodes, too. “I have also shown Chinese families some rural homesteads outside of Charlottetown. They have lived in Beijing all their lives and they talked to me about the pollution and the crazy traffic, so to come here and have five acres and a little farmhouse for a couple hundred thousand bucks is a dream come true.”

National Post 
kcarlson@nationalpost.com