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http://www.edmontonsun.com/News/Alberta/2007/05/13/4177280.html+ n9 ]4 \5 v* n! l" n Q
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! |1 Z/ Y" P! w' RCALGARY — 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. n( f# M& k3 }0 E& @, x# Q
+ J+ ?* s: e! M* k1 _5 mAlberta Premier Ed Stelmach says the agreement will cut red tape and give the province increased influence and control of immigration. * A& Q3 G# v/ @6 E& i
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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.
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: n) ], @8 h# z" d. u' b0 Z! P0 [1 kRight now, 2,500 workers per year come under the program. 5 r$ X. z3 }7 P, p
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Federal Immigration Minister Diane Finley said the changes will be noticed by people offering their skills to Canada.
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' d' y& o# g& G6 g% f3 d, _7 xThe 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. + x+ F+ F; {( k+ g% A
/ l5 m' m/ X, O; ~0 q1 m( zIt’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. 8 T7 q5 Y, c1 L3 ~+ W
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But Birjandian said Alberta’s often unaffordable housing remains a daunting hurdle for many newcomers. % g/ v$ o' k0 T% ^ T
' Y% p6 U2 g9 S( U0 C“For people coming in, it is a bigger issue for settling in,” he said. 2 P$ Z5 m& _+ m( Z4 [9 A) _
9 M* J/ }2 B* x9 r. j“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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