While the number of people immigrating to Canada will always spark debate, other factors make it an important election issue.
Mike Scott, local immigration partnership coordinator for the Timmins and District Multicultural Centre, explained that relocating to Canada is not as simple as showing up at the border with a suitcase.
“There are a number of different avenues families can take if they’re looking to move to Canada,” he said. “Looking at the IRCC (Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada) website, you’ll see there’s a whole list of streams people can come through — a skilled worker stream, a post graduate stream … There are different streams geared to different kinds of needs economically and workforce wise.”
One pilot project sees immigration used to help fill the skilled labour shortage in Northern Ontario.
“What’s getting a lot of attention in Timmins right now, is the Rural and Northern Immigration Pilot Project,” Scott said. “It is geared specifically to rural communities and Timmins was selected. This is going to give us a chance to bring over some families that can fill the specific needs are employers are asking for.
“There’s a lot of key jobs that’s been identified as in-demand jobs. We work closely with a lot of different partners. The TEDC (Timmins Economic Development Corporation) is leading the pilot project. They’re the ones, along with their employer counsel, decided the kind of jobs they’re looking to fill and decide how the selection criteria is formed.”
For a family to successfully immigrate, special services are needed to help adjust to their new life.
“Settlement services can be anything from helping to fill out paperwork to finding housing, finding employment, finding childcare — are the essentials a family would need when they come to Canada for the first time,” he said. “We offer settlement services through the multicultural centre and those are federally-funded services.
“Some of the other supports that are out there, English as a second language is a big one. I work with a lot of partners in the education sphere to try and get these programs up and running.”
Newcomers can also face challenges in day-to-day life.
“Access to child care services — lot of times people are coming over with large families,” Scott said. “Affordable and sustainable housing is a big issue. Not just affordable, are you living in an environment that’s relatively free of danger.
“Racism and discrimination can be a big factor. But we’re seeing that’s kind of going the way of the dog here in Timmins and other Northern communities. I think people are starting to understand there is an economic necessity for newcomers and that if we want to continue to see our economy and our community thrive, then we’ve got to open our doors up.”
For people who love the outdoors, Northern Ontario communities are not a hard sell for immigration.
“People are very attracted to Northern Ontario, which might come as a shock,” Scott said. “People from all over the world are interested in coming here. It’s not necessary because there’s job opportunities, it’s because it’s a very attractive place to live. Timmins natives know why we love to live here and other people are taking notice of that too.”
The attitude of the community plays a key role in keeping families here for the long term.
“The important part is keeping them here once they get here,” he said. “Our market isn’t going to thrive if they’re coming and going.
“One thing to help keep people here is very simple, just be very welcoming in your demeanor. If you see someone who is new to the community, give them a smile and a wave and let them know that they feel welcome.
“Keeping people and their skills here is going to be a difference maker going forward.”
The federal election is less than a week away, on Oct. 21. There are candidates running in Timmins-James Bay NDP Charlie Angus, Liberal Michelle Boileau, Conservative Kraymr Grenke, Green Max Kennedy, and PPC Renaud Roy.
TimminsToday asked the five Timmins-James Bay candidates about immigration. Here's what they have to say:
NDP Charlie Angus
What’s your party’s plan for immigration?
Northern Ontario was built on immigration. We have a huge opportunity in the north to build our economy by welcoming more immigrant families into our region. We see so many amazing success stories of immigrant investors and entrepeneurs who are adding to the regional economy. In my work as an MP making the north more enticing to new families has been a priority. I will continue working with northern partners like Northern College and College Boreal on encouraging new students to come north. I participate every year in the incredible northern showcase at PDAC to encourage international investors to work with our northern businesses.
With people around the world interested in Timmins, what are ways the federal government can help retain people coming to the north?
Timmins will do very well with the immigration pilot project. The New Democratic Party will ensure that this program becomes permanent. We are also looking to have placement programs so northern graduates can get work in the region without having to leave for the south. Another key element is to ensure that we work on programs to build up the skills of the large Indigenous population of youth. They will play a huge roll in the growing 21st Century economy.
Liberal Michelle Boileau
Immigration helps to make Canada more diverse – and more successful. In Timmins-James Bay, new Canadians work hard – teaching our children, caring for us when we’re sick, starting new businesses, and creating good jobs. I was proud to see that Timmins was selected to be part of the Rural and Northern Immigration Pilot program, and hope that its successes will resonate across the region.
These contributions are needed now more than ever before. As people in Canada grow older and family sizes grow smaller, many businesses and communities struggle to find enough workers, putting the services people rely on – and Canada’s strong economy – at risk.
To keep our economy strong and growing, we will move forward with modest and responsible increases to immigration, with a focus on welcoming highly skilled people who can help build a stronger Canada.
We will also continue to work with the government of the United States to modernize the Safe Third Country Agreement.
While immigration benefits Canada as a whole, not every community – including those experiencing serious labour shortages – is able to make the most of the contributions new Canadians can bring.
To make sure that communities of all sizes are better able to attract and support new Canadians, we will more forward with a Municipal Nominee Program. This program will allow local communities, chambers of commerce, and local labour councils to directly sponsor permanent immigrants. A minimum of 5,000 of the new spaces will be dedicated to the Municipal Nominee Program
With the right supports, immigrants are able to get to work, help build up our communities, and grow our local economies in short order. But arriving in Canada is just the first step on a long journey to citizenship.
Becoming a citizen allows new immigrants to fully participate in Canadian society, and the process of granting citizenship is a government service, not something that should be paid for with a user fee. To make citizenship more affordable, we will make the application process free for those who have fulfilled the requirements needed to obtain it.
Conservative Kraymr Grenke
What’s your party’s plan for immigration?
A Conservative government will work immediately to restore the fairness, order and compassion of our immigration system.
We will:
• Safeguard and emphasize economic immigration.
• Stand up for families and ensure that spouses and children can be reunited.
• Improve language training to ensure greater proficiency in English and French and newcomers’ ability to succeed economically and socially.
• Improve credential recognition and make it easier for new Canadians who have existing skills that meet our standards to work here. We all lose out when doctors and engineers are not able to practice their profession.
• Ensure that our system prioritizes people facing true persecution – focus government sponsorship on the victims of the four atrocity crimes – and restore integrity to our system by supporting the consistent application of fair rules.
• Work to reunite survivors of genocide who have already resettled in Canada more expeditiously.
• Do more to promote private sponsorships of refugees.
• End to illegal border crossings crisis by closing the loophole in the Safe-Third Country Agreement that allows some people to skip the line and avoid the queue.
•With baby boomers retiring, we will need the world’s best and brightest to choose Canada. Immigration, done right, is good for the economy, good for jobs, and good for the people who have chosen to come to Canada.
Andrew Scheer has committed to setting immigration levels consistent with what is in Canada’s best interests. That number may change every year to reflect what Canada needs, and who needs Canada.
With people around the world interested in Timmins, what are ways the federal government can help retain people coming to the north?
I've said this multiple times, we need to make certain our communities are ready for the future. We need to upgrade our recreational facilities, and we need to invest in meaningful infrastructure. Once we accomplish that, we need to make sure that ALL families, not just immigrants, feel secure in the knowledge that our resource sector is protected so good-paying jobs are not lost by government oversight. NDP policies in particular are frightening. If the NDP had its way, mining and forestry would be wiped off the map. Every speech from every banking economist across the country contains the same four words 'CANADA'S RESOURCE-BASED ECONOMY". What is it that the Liberals and NDP don't understand that Conservatives fully comprehend?
Green Max Kennedy
A Green government will make sure that all migrants are supported in achieving their hopes and ambitions as new Canadians:
• Ensure professionals being considered for immigration have the licensing requirements for their professions clearly explained before entry.
• Work with professional associations to create a robust system for evaluating the education and training credentials of immigrants against Canadian standards, with the goal of expediting accreditation and expanding professional opportunities for immigrants.
• Lead a national discussion to define the term “environmental refugee,” advocate for its inclusion as a refugee category in Canada and accept an appropriate share of the world’s environmental refugees into Canada.
• Allocate much greater funding for training in offcial languages (ESL and FSL) for new immigrants through earmarked transfers to the provinces for primary and secondary public school and free night school programs.
• Work with municipalities and provinces to improve the integration of new Canadians into the multicultural fabric of our country.
• Support multicultural communities by assisting cultural organizations to obtain charitable status.
• Eliminate the Temporary Foreign Workers Program and address labour shortages by increasing immigration, working with employers to establish paths to permanent residency.
• Establish a program to process the estimated 200,000 people living in Canada without official status,
providing a pathway to permanent residency for those who qualify.
• Reintroduce legislation to establish a Civilian Complaints and Review Commission for the Canada Border Services Agency.
• Terminate Canada’s Safe Third Country Agreement with the United States.
• Regulate the immigration consulting industry to ensure universally fair, legal and accessible services to help people navigate the immigration system.
• Increase penalties for immigration consultants convicted of human smuggling and devote more resources to investigation and enforcement.
• Amend the Anti-Terrorism Act and the Public Safety Act to require that, after a reasonable period, formal charges be brought against all those detained.
• Investigate allegations by the United Nations Human Rights Committee of Canadian offcials cooperating with foreign agencies known to use torture.
• Ensure the “lost Canadians” quietly being denied citizenship through archaic laws are protected and that their citizenship is restored. Although some signifcant progress has been made, some are still “lost.”
• Implement the recommendation of the Standing Committee on Citizenship and Immigration to grant
permanent resident status immediately to those who have refused or left military service in a war not
sanctioned by the United Nations.
• Improve the pathway for international students and foreign workers to Canadian permanent residency
and citizenship.
• Speed up family reunifcation, especially reuniting children with their parents.
• Increase funding of multicultural associations providing immigrant support programs including
language programs
As for retaining people in the North That is addressed in developing the community supports so that they feel a sense of belonging here. The north was built by immigrants, many of whom stayed.
PPC Renaud RoyWhat’s your party’s plan for immigration?
We will fix our immigration system. Since the Liberals came to power, our immigration has been completely out of whack. Since Trudeau's infamous tweet in January 2017, 45,000 migrants crossed our southern border illegally. This is not only costing Canadian tax payers millions of dollars, but it has allowed people to abuse this weakness while real refugees in danger for their lives around the world are not considered.
This past spring, my wife and I invited a dear friend of ours from South Africa to come and spend four weeks with us in Canada during her school summer break. We provided an official letter of invitation to the Canadian Consulate guaranteeing to look after her food and lodging while here in Canada, plus her return home after the determined period. White farmers in SA have been the target of extremely cruel violence and murders in the last years. Our friend, has spoken openly and honestly about this very serious problem, as so many people over there fear for their lives.
Sadly, Trudeau's High Commissioner in South Africa rejected our friend's visitor's visa application! What was their reason? They feared she might not have wanted to leave Canada after her stay! Do they think that illegal border crossers are coming for a simple visit? There is a clear double standard and we will fix that.
Secondly, we will make sure to purposefully seek out and prioritize people with the right trades coming to Canada so that our economic needs may be met. We will always put our citizens front and center when making our policy decisions regarding immigration.
With people around the world interested in Timmins, what are ways the federal government can help retain people coming to the north?
There are a few things to consider when bringing new people to any area. First, we must advance at a reasonable rate in order for the supply of housing to meet the demand. A friend of ours who came to work in Timmins from the Ottawa area shared how difficult it was to find an apartment at a reasonable price. Obviously, the demand is presently greater than the supply. When bringing in new people, whether they are permanent residents or international students, the priority of any government is first to its own people and to ensure that they are not disadvantaged by a housing shortage and/or inflated housing costs.
Having said that, having lived in the country of Romania for close to 15 years, I know for certain that many young people there would be grateful to have the opportunity to come and live in Canada, even in more isolated areas like ours. Since the People's Party of Canada wants to place an emphasis on economic migrants, I would recommend that local businesses with specific needs work in cooperation with Canadian Embassies overseas to seek out and recruit those who would meet our labour shortages. In the past, people desiring to immigrate to Canada were evaluated on a points system. We will implement these criteria also in the system to meet our needs.
