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http://www.edmontonsun.com/News/Alberta/2007/05/13/4177280.html) \- U1 q; E3 o1 V1 v: }/ J
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% ^9 l* [, p" t1 d- u+ [" wCALGARY — 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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. o3 a+ d( U7 X& G" {) SAlberta Premier Ed Stelmach says the agreement will cut red tape and give the province increased influence and control of immigration.
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8 B; M# F/ k' Z' p/ ~The rise to 25,000 immigrant workers per year will happen over the next 10 years under the provincial nominee program. 0 T# h [/ x E* n
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Right now, 2,500 workers per year come under the program. , v( `7 d3 {) |1 H! g
4 W7 U, v5 N6 A& R& SFederal Immigration Minister Diane Finley said the changes will be noticed by people offering their skills to Canada. ) A( T0 T4 D- p3 K' R
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The 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.
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It’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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5 s5 v1 C6 F: m P; P. @But Birjandian said Alberta’s often unaffordable housing remains a daunting hurdle for many newcomers. # V+ ~9 ^( o r
' o+ I2 H. V0 {( y$ C h, Z- V, j“For people coming in, it is a bigger issue for settling in,” he said. 5 v% a2 S' a+ u
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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.” 7 g- t2 {4 v3 _# m4 h! @/ O/ H
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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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