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Decentralized Democracy

House Hansard - 110

44th Parl. 1st Sess.
October 7, 2022 10:00AM
  • Oct/7/22 11:28:03 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, the hon. member asked if we know how to do things properly. We know how to bring in a record number of new permanent residents, students and foreign workers. We know how to reach Quebec's immigration thresholds. We will continue to make Canada a welcoming new home for immigrants who make tremendous contributions to our economy and our communities.
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  • Oct/7/22 11:29:13 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, the reality is that this year, as a result of decisions we have taken to hire more workers, leverage technological solutions and relax policy requirements, we have the largest number of newcomers arriving in Canada, both permanent residents and temporary residents. There are more newcomers coming to fill key gaps in the labour force than ever before. We are going to continue to do everything we can to speed up the process because we believe it is good for Canada. Even this morning, I was able to launch new policies that will allow international students to work more hours to contribute to the labour force shortage we are experiencing. It is good for our economy, and it is good for our communities.
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  • Oct/7/22 11:49:31 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, I thank the hon. member for her question, and for her passion and advocacy on behalf of some of the most vulnerable people in the world. I share her concern about their vulnerability and that is why we advanced one of the most substantial commitments, and in fact, the most substantial on a per capita basis, to resettle at least 40,000 Afghan refugees by the end of next year. I am so pleased to share with the House that a couple of weeks ago, we crossed an important milestone. We now have more than 20,000 Afghan refugees living safely in Canada. We are not done. We are going to do everything we can to make good on our commitment no matter what it takes.
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  • Oct/7/22 11:57:07 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, we need to revamp our asylum system, but there is no magic solution. Closing Roxham Road is not a good solution; that would just move the problem elsewhere. Suspending the safe third country agreement would have the opposite effect. What we need to do is modernize the agreement, and that is what we are doing. We are working with the United States to find a sustainable, permanent solution. We have to keep working with the provincial government in Quebec.
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  • Oct/7/22 11:58:15 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, we are going to continue to work to improve the situation at Roxham Road, but we have international and domestic legal obligations that we are following to the letter. We are trying to process people in a humane way, to recognize that human beings who are coming into Canada are sometimes very vulnerable. We are going to meet our legal obligations while we work toward a permanent solution, which requires us to negotiate an agreement with the United States of America. We are seized with this issue. We are going to continue our work to make sure that we abide by our obligations and do right by some of the vulnerable people who are seeking refuge here in Canada.
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  • Oct/7/22 12:02:46 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, let me begin by thanking my hon. colleague for his advocacy to grow the Canadian economy and to support international students. Canada has had one of the strongest economic recoveries of any developed nation in the world when it comes to bouncing back from COVID–19. Despite the fact that we have recently hit near the lowest unemployment rate, there are nearly a million jobs available in the Canadian economy that we need to fill. There are 500,000 international students living in Canada who can make contributions. This morning I announced that we are lifting the cap on the number of hours those students can work, which can make a difference to the Canadian economy. It is a great day for international students. It is a great day for the economy.
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