Hon. Alice Wong, P.C.

CANADA AND BRITISH COLUMBIA SIGN NEW IMMIGRATION AGREEMENT

VANCOUVER – Today, Dr. Alice Wong, Parliamentary Secretary to the Honourable Jason Kenney, Minister of Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism, and Moira Stilwell, B.C. Minister of Advanced Education and Labour Market Development, signed the new Canada-British Columbia Immigration Agreement.

“The signing of today’s agreement with British Columbia will support the integration of newcomers, helping to ensure that they’re able to contribute to our economy and succeed in Canada,” said Minister Kenney. “I am also pleased to announce the first temporary foreign worker annex to this agreement today. This will facilitate the entry of these workers to help British Columbia fill critical labour shortages.”

“The agreement will help Canada attract the skilled international workers it needs to meet the needs of the Canadian economy as we emerge from the global economic recession,” said Diane Finley, Minister of Human Resources and Skills Development. “It will certainly strengthen British Columbia’s ability to meet its labour market needs both today and in the future.”

“The renewal of this agreement strengthens our partnership with the federal government and our commitment to providing welcoming and inclusive communities and workplaces in B.C. for newcomers,” said Stilwell. “Immigrants coming to our province not only enrich the social fabric of B.C., they also bring economic advantages, generate innovation, attract industries and workers, and spur economic growth.”

The agreement formalizes and builds on the existing collaborative relationship between Canada and British Columbia on immigration matters and recognizes the importance of involving community partners, including local governments, service providers and the private sector, in welcoming and integrating newcomers. This year, $114 million will be transferred to British Columbia under the agreement to support settlement and integration services and welcoming communities’ initiatives.

Attracting more immigrants to British Columbia and retaining and integrating them to address British Columbia’s unique economic and social needs will be to Canada’s overall social, cultural and economic benefit.

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Backgrounder

Canada‑British Columbia Immigration Agreement

Overview

Immigration is a shared responsibility with the provinces and territories. The Canada‑British Columbia Immigration Agreement defines the respective roles and responsibilities of each jurisdiction for immigration matters under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act and Regulations. It supports mutual federal and provincial objectives in the areas of immigrant attraction, selection, admission, retention and integration.

The agreement provides the framework for managing immigration activities, such as provincial nominees, international students, sponsorship, immigration health issues and temporary foreign workers.

It also strengthens accountability and reporting for federally funded settlement and integration services.

British Columbia receives the third-largest share of immigrants in Canada – approximately 40,000 immigrants each year. China, India and the Philippines are the top three source countries for immigrants in British Columbia. There are also about 120,000 temporary residents (temporary foreign workers and international students) in British Columbia at any given time.

Immigration is critical to the province’s economic recovery and growth, and will account for most of British Columbia’s net population growth within the next two decades. It is estimated that there will be approximately 950,000 job openings in British Columbia between now and 2020 and it is expected that immigrants will fill one-third of these jobs.

The agreement replaces a previous agreement signed in 2004 and is valid for five years from the date of signing.

Specifically, the new agreement means:

* British Columbia will continue to have a say in permanent and temporary immigration to the province, in support of its social, demographic and economic development and labour market priorities, including skill shortages.
* Canada and British Columbia will enhance their cooperation in overseas immigration marketing initiatives, including attracting skilled workers, entrepreneurs and students to the province. Both governments will also work together to increase information for new immigrants before they arrive.
* The successful settlement and integration of immigrants and refugees in British Columbia will continue to be supported by programs through ongoing federal funding. Settlement and integration supports will also be strengthened for newcomers.
* Both governments commit to continue working together and with official language minority communities on developing activities to support Francophone immigration and integration in British Columbia.

Funding transferred to British Columbia under the agreement has significantly increased since 2005-2006, from approximately $40 million to $114 million in 2010-2011, reflecting Canada’s increased commitment to funding immigrant services.

In response to these funding increases, in 2007, British Columbia developed WelcomeBC, British Columbia’s strategic framework for immigrant settlement and integration services and welcoming communities initiatives. WelcomeBC is delivered through 377 contracts with over 100 partners, who employ approximately 1,200 workers, including school districts, the private sector and community-based organizations.

Since its inception, WelcomeBC has expanded settlement services across British Columbia to over 85,000 newcomers a year; created settlement services in 850 schools in 21 school districts, serving more than 41,000 immigrant children and their families; increased regional access to English-language training from 29 to 58 communities; introduced a Welcoming and Inclusive Communities and Workplaces Program in 33 communities, which was recognized as a best practice by the G8 expert committee on diversity; and launched WelcomeBC.ca, serving over 25,000 clients monthly.

Facilitating the entry of temporary foreign workers

The Temporary Foreign Workers Annex will improve the responsiveness of the Temporary Foreign Workers Program in British Columbia by providing the province with a greater role in helping these workers come to Canada.

British Columbia will now be able to recommend the issuance of work permits to some temporary foreign workers or groups of temporary foreign workers belonging to a specific occupational group where skill and labour shortages exist, without first requiring a labour market opinion from the Government of Canada. A labour market opinion confirms that the entry of workers will not have a negative impact on the Canadian labour market. The Government of Canada will grant a work permit to applicants after they have met federal admissibility requirements, such as those related to health, criminality and security.

The annex will also help increase the protection of foreign workers. British Columbia will improve information for its temporary foreign workers concerning their rights as workers, their eligibility for British Columbia health insurance, workers compensation benefits, employer- or government-sponsored pension plans, and protection under the relevant provincial or federal occupational health and safety, employment and labour relations standards.

The entry of temporary workers will be facilitated while recognizing the importance of supporting British Columbia’s efforts to train and improve the skills of British Columbians.

Responding to the settlement and integration needs of immigrants and refugees

British Columbia and Canada are co-operating in providing settlement and integration services to immigrants in the province. The present agreement confirms the Government of Canada’s commitment to fair and ongoing funding for settlement services in British Columbia. British Columbia has been responsible for the design, administration and delivery of federally funded settlement and integration services since 1998. Canada will continue to be responsible for the design, administration and delivery of resettlement services for refugees.

This agreement commits both governments to sharing and enhancing accountability for the effective delivery of settlement and integration services. This will include measuring and reporting on the outcomes of these services for immigrants and refugees, such as improved official language skills and improved ability to access the labour market. Both governments also agree to work with other provinces and territories to develop a national accountability framework to ensure that settlement and integration services are delivered effectively to newcomers across Canada.

Expanding partnerships with communities

Both Canada and British Columbia recognize that immigration is a two-way process. Successful integration programs involve the communities in which immigrants will work and live. The agreement recognizes the importance of working with community-based organizations, municipal governments, the private sector and official language minority communities to explore issues related to their respective interests in immigration. This will also help support the development of programs and services for immigrants and maximize the benefits of immigration.

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