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Decentralized Democracy

House Hansard - 77

44th Parl. 1st Sess.
May 30, 2022 11:00AM
Context: House Hansard - 77 - May/30/22
Hon. Sean Fraser (Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, Lib.)
  • May/30/22 3:02:07 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the employers out there who are working hard to bring in workers to fill gaps in the labour force. It will help kick-start one of the strongest economic recoveries that is already taking place. We have put tons of resources into boosting the processes and capacity of the department, including $85 million in the economic and fiscal update to target work permits, study permits, temporary residency visas, proof of citizenship cards and PR cards. I am pleased to report that these efforts are taking hold. This year, to date, we have already processed more than 216,000 work permits, compared to only 88,000 this far into last year. We are starting to make serious progress. We are going to continue to make the necessary investments to grow our economy.
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Context: House Hansard - 77 - May/30/22
Hon. Sean Fraser (Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, Lib.)
  • May/30/22 3:03:17 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, as I just answered in response to the previous question, we are making unprecedented investments in Canada's immigration system to ensure that we can smoothly welcome people to Canada who make essential contributions to our economy. I would like to point out to the hon. member that we are now in an economic context in which we have seen 115% of the jobs lost during the pandemic come back. Our GDP is better than prepandemic levels and our unemployment level is now at the lowest rate since we started recording those statistics more than 50 years ago. That said, we can do more by continuing to bring in workers to fill the almost 900,000 gaps in the economy and the labour market. We are going to continue to invest in our immigration system to do that. It is the path forward that will help us achieve growth.
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Context: House Hansard - 77 - May/30/22
Hon. Sean Fraser (Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, Lib.)
  • May/30/22 3:04:37 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, we know that immigration plays a key role in combatting the labour shortage. IRCC is prioritizing work permit processing for in-demand occupations. This year, we have processed more than 200,000 work permit applications, which is nearly double the number processed over the same period last year. We will continue to ensure that Canadian employers have access to the workers they need to secure Canada's economic recovery.
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