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http://www.edmontonsun.com/News/Alberta/2007/05/13/4177280.html" P1 U6 Q* p# k1 F# k" b
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CALGARY — An agreement between Alberta and the federal government will allow 25,000 foreign workers per year to come to the province to aid in its worker shortage.
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2 o* r3 Z$ ?7 ^5 ?Alberta Premier Ed Stelmach says the agreement will cut red tape and give the province increased influence and control of immigration.
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The rise to 25,000 immigrant workers per year will happen over the next 10 years under the provincial nominee program. ; A* z+ l+ N! x O* c9 l
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Right now, 2,500 workers per year come under the program. / ?3 z3 c s0 q: m& B& z
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Federal Immigration Minister Diane Finley said the changes will be noticed by people offering their skills to Canada. 9 w- L6 f# S5 V; T
6 [' H. y1 R+ y. t9 zThe pact gives Alberta the power to nominate more immigrants possessing skills needed in the province and also provides more resources to help them settle here. + y0 |4 p( x# Z0 w1 s
- q% ~4 B# D/ v6 j0 qIt’s a step in the right direction in breaking down time-consuming, frustrating barriers facing immigrants seeking to ply their skills here, said Fariboz Birjandian, chairman of the Alberta Association of Immigrant Serving Agencies.
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' U1 B3 A$ l$ ^% IBut Birjandian said Alberta’s often unaffordable housing remains a daunting hurdle for many newcomers.
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0 F5 O% O4 d5 @% d“For people coming in, it is a bigger issue for settling in,” he said. : l" q# c; r1 L+ ]
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“And we don’t want Calgary becoming a city where all the rich people live on one side and all the poor on the other.”
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Stelmach said the province is giving $285 million in new money for affordable housing and is trying to tackle that problem. |
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