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Niagara Falls neighbourhood still in shock after 'concerning' bomb bust
Still unclear what plan might have been after pipe bombs allegedly found inside home, police say
Author of the article:Joe Warmington
Published Sep 09, 2024 • Last updated 1 day ago • 4 minute read
NIAGARA FALLS – It’s always better when police get to the bomb before it explodes.
That was something Niagara Regional Police said they were able to do last week.
While it’s still unclear just what the plan might have been with up to four pipe bombs allegedly found inside a home, Niagara police may very well have stopped a potential terror attack from taking place with some on-the-ground intelligence-gathering that police said led to finding some improvised explosive devices before they could be used.
The Toronto Sun has learned that two days before bomb disposal robots were deployed in a quiet residential street in Niagara Falls, neighbours said police attended the same home allegedly in response to a loud and profane war of words between a male and a female.
A home on Beaver Glen Dr. in Niagara Falls was the scene of a police raid.
This home on Beaver Glen Dr. in Niagara Falls was the scene of a police raid on Thursday, Sept. 5, 2024, when a man was arrested and charged with explosives-related offences.
“It was quite a scene,” said a neighbour. “There was lots of yelling and a woman was heard telling a man to f— off.”
That was on Sept. 3. There was an even larger Niagara police presence on Thursday.
“There were so many police cars on the street,” said neighbour Barry Dzurban. “Those whole areas were blocked off. We are not used to something like that here. We wondered if we were in danger.”
Not long after, residents of Beaver Glen Dr. noticed there were two of those robots used to get rid of explosive devices.
“There is no point in sugar-coating it,” said a neighbour. “It’s very concerning.”
There was, according to neighbours, more excitement behind the home.
“The suspect they were looking for bolted and tried to run away,” said Dzurban. “The police caught him and put him in handcuffs, but he put up a hissy fit. He didn’t want to be detained and was pounding the window of the police car later.”
While police charged Taha Sleiman, 21, with make, possess, care and control of an explosive device and unlawful possession of explosives, they indicated Monday this probe is in the early stages.
The accused is innocent until proven otherwise. The charges have not been tested in court.
But if the allegations are true, this was some fine police work.
“This remains an active investigation by officers within the 2 District (Niagara Falls/Niagara-on-the-Lake) detective office,” said Niagara police spokesperson Stephanie Sabourin. “The motivation and intention remains under investigation by 2 District detectives. We are encouraging anyone with information to contact police as this is an active investigation.”
Police said Sleiman was being held in custody.
People on the street identified the suspect, who on social media says he was a Niagara College student and has previous ties to other parts of Ontario and the United States.
“That’s him,” said a neighbour, adding he “waved to him and others in the house” but did not know them personally.
“There were sometimes sketchy people hanging around there.”
The neighbour said he knows the owner of the house and that all of the residents are renters.
All of this is just too weird to not look into closer. What the heck is going on here?
This is a question neighbours are asking after a potential terror attack was allegedly thwarted over the summer and a father and son were arrested in Richmond Hill before being charged with terrorism offences. Plus there was a man in Quebec who was arrested last week on terrorism charges for allegedly plotting to attack Jews in New York City; the murder and attempted murder convictions of three men in the Chicken Land Restaurant shootings in Mississauga and their alleged allegiance to ISIS; and the strange explosion at Edmonton’s City Hall, among other things.
“We would like to know what this was,” said Dzurban.
Neighbours are entitled to know. And eventually they will.
“Due to the ongoing nature of the investigation and privacy restrictions, I am limited in the information that I am able to currently share,” said Sabourin.
Right now, police said, there is a full investigation underway.
At this point, this is a local investigation and the federal government and the RCMP have not been brought in. It’s unknown if this might have had something to do with terrorism or if there are other possibilities, but when explosives are allegedly found in a house and detonated it invokes a feeling of terror.
It certainly was terrifying for people on this street.
“We have never seen anything like this in my 20 years here,” said Dzurban.
It’s also not lost on him that if not for Niagara police finding these alleged bombs and arresting a suspect, who knows how much worse this could have been?
Niagara police are no strangers to terror plots, either. In 2013, two suspects were arrested and charged after allegedly plotting to blow up a bridge in the hopes of derailing a passenger train.
That plot was stopped in time and thanks to a takedown arrest on Thursday, police may have potentially thwarted another incident.
torontosun.com
Still unclear what plan might have been after pipe bombs allegedly found inside home, police say
Author of the article:Joe Warmington
Published Sep 09, 2024 • Last updated 1 day ago • 4 minute read
NIAGARA FALLS – It’s always better when police get to the bomb before it explodes.
That was something Niagara Regional Police said they were able to do last week.
While it’s still unclear just what the plan might have been with up to four pipe bombs allegedly found inside a home, Niagara police may very well have stopped a potential terror attack from taking place with some on-the-ground intelligence-gathering that police said led to finding some improvised explosive devices before they could be used.
The Toronto Sun has learned that two days before bomb disposal robots were deployed in a quiet residential street in Niagara Falls, neighbours said police attended the same home allegedly in response to a loud and profane war of words between a male and a female.
A home on Beaver Glen Dr. in Niagara Falls was the scene of a police raid.
This home on Beaver Glen Dr. in Niagara Falls was the scene of a police raid on Thursday, Sept. 5, 2024, when a man was arrested and charged with explosives-related offences.
“It was quite a scene,” said a neighbour. “There was lots of yelling and a woman was heard telling a man to f— off.”
That was on Sept. 3. There was an even larger Niagara police presence on Thursday.
“There were so many police cars on the street,” said neighbour Barry Dzurban. “Those whole areas were blocked off. We are not used to something like that here. We wondered if we were in danger.”
Not long after, residents of Beaver Glen Dr. noticed there were two of those robots used to get rid of explosive devices.
“There is no point in sugar-coating it,” said a neighbour. “It’s very concerning.”
There was, according to neighbours, more excitement behind the home.
“The suspect they were looking for bolted and tried to run away,” said Dzurban. “The police caught him and put him in handcuffs, but he put up a hissy fit. He didn’t want to be detained and was pounding the window of the police car later.”
While police charged Taha Sleiman, 21, with make, possess, care and control of an explosive device and unlawful possession of explosives, they indicated Monday this probe is in the early stages.
The accused is innocent until proven otherwise. The charges have not been tested in court.
But if the allegations are true, this was some fine police work.
“This remains an active investigation by officers within the 2 District (Niagara Falls/Niagara-on-the-Lake) detective office,” said Niagara police spokesperson Stephanie Sabourin. “The motivation and intention remains under investigation by 2 District detectives. We are encouraging anyone with information to contact police as this is an active investigation.”
Police said Sleiman was being held in custody.
People on the street identified the suspect, who on social media says he was a Niagara College student and has previous ties to other parts of Ontario and the United States.
“That’s him,” said a neighbour, adding he “waved to him and others in the house” but did not know them personally.
“There were sometimes sketchy people hanging around there.”
The neighbour said he knows the owner of the house and that all of the residents are renters.
All of this is just too weird to not look into closer. What the heck is going on here?
This is a question neighbours are asking after a potential terror attack was allegedly thwarted over the summer and a father and son were arrested in Richmond Hill before being charged with terrorism offences. Plus there was a man in Quebec who was arrested last week on terrorism charges for allegedly plotting to attack Jews in New York City; the murder and attempted murder convictions of three men in the Chicken Land Restaurant shootings in Mississauga and their alleged allegiance to ISIS; and the strange explosion at Edmonton’s City Hall, among other things.
“We would like to know what this was,” said Dzurban.
Neighbours are entitled to know. And eventually they will.
“Due to the ongoing nature of the investigation and privacy restrictions, I am limited in the information that I am able to currently share,” said Sabourin.
Right now, police said, there is a full investigation underway.
At this point, this is a local investigation and the federal government and the RCMP have not been brought in. It’s unknown if this might have had something to do with terrorism or if there are other possibilities, but when explosives are allegedly found in a house and detonated it invokes a feeling of terror.
It certainly was terrifying for people on this street.
“We have never seen anything like this in my 20 years here,” said Dzurban.
It’s also not lost on him that if not for Niagara police finding these alleged bombs and arresting a suspect, who knows how much worse this could have been?
Niagara police are no strangers to terror plots, either. In 2013, two suspects were arrested and charged after allegedly plotting to blow up a bridge in the hopes of derailing a passenger train.
That plot was stopped in time and thanks to a takedown arrest on Thursday, police may have potentially thwarted another incident.
WARMINGTON: Niagara Falls neighbourhood still in shock after 'concerning' bomb bust
It’s always better when police get to the bomb before it explodes. That was something Niagara Regional Police were able to do last week.
Female international students targeted for prostitution by Brampton landlords: Councillor
Author of the article
enette Wilford
Published Sep 10, 2024 • Last updated 1 day ago • 3 minute read
A Brampton city councillor claims that rental ads are exploiting desperate international students, particularly girls, and prostituting them for rent.
Councillor Rowena Santos told the Toronto Sun that Brampton’s dire international students situation started during the pandemic, and the city “had no choice to deal with it.”
“We have this unreported population and after years of having many international students come to the city and live here, we’ve seen a proliferation of illegal basement apartments, with single-detached homes being converted into multi-unit dwellings where people rent to students,” Santos said.
She said that due to what she said is a lack of proper student housing in the city, “they end up in these horrible situations where landlords are exploiting them.”
Ads on Facebook Marketplace, Kijiji and other classified sites have increasingly included “friends with benefits” as a so-called bonus for prospective tenants.
Concerned residents have begun sharing those ads with councillors, including one first reported by 6ixBuzzTV that gave potential renters the option of free rent, food and a $200 shopping bonus “for those who are okay with friends-with-benefits relationship.”
#REPORT: ‘Disgusting’ apartment ad offering ‘friends with benefits’ discount shared at Brampton council meeting. pic.twitter.com/TAqT7s8YQS
— 6ixBuzzTV (@6ixbuzztv) September 9, 2024
“Because of cultural dynamics, many of these young women don’t even understand sexuality, don’t even understand consent, some of them are completely inexperienced, so the term ‘friends with benefits’ makes it even more horrible, especially if they’re already struggling to find a place to live or the financial means to pay for it,” Santos said.
She noted that some of these young women have ended up pregnant and don’t know what to do because of the shame tied to it, so they don’t want to go home.
Worse yet, others are committing suicide and being shipped home in coffins, Santos said.
Brampton is the first municipality to have a charter related to international students’ quality of life and part of the Residential Rental Licensing (RRL) pilot program centres on housing.
But there’s only so much municipalities can do.
“The Landlord Tenant Board is provincial, it’s one of our biggest problems as a municipality,” Santos said, pointing out that she believes the licensing of landlords should be treated similar to a business.
She added that if a landlord makes a complaint, the municipality can’t deal with it, only the Landlord Tenant Board can.
‘ONE BIG ROOM’: Brampton landlord tries to target families of three for rental
“And the list of complaints with them is so long that the tenants, the bad tenants, end up being there for years.”
Santos supported two motions put forward at the Sept. 4 session by Councillor Dennis Keenan, who told the Sun in a statement that his area “has seen an increase of derelict rental properties operated by slum landlords,” and is often sent photos of properties and ads targeting students, mostly women.
Due to the RRL, the city is hiring 39 new bylaw officers to enforce the rules the municipality can control when it comes to dealing with landlords by ensuring they maintain property and health and safety standards.
Keenan added that he looks forward to “working with the province to assist us in how we at the city can move forward with action to put a stop to the squalor-like conditions that we see some students living in.”
Mayor Patrick Brown told the Sun that the city’s enforcement teams are “diligently and professionally responding to a wide range of complaints and conducting thorough investigations.”
He added: “We have heard loud and clear from our residents that we can’t turn a blind eye to these infractions. The city of Brampton will not tolerate slum landlords!”
instagram.com
torontosun.com
Author of the article
enette WilfordPublished Sep 10, 2024 • Last updated 1 day ago • 3 minute read
A Brampton city councillor claims that rental ads are exploiting desperate international students, particularly girls, and prostituting them for rent.
Councillor Rowena Santos told the Toronto Sun that Brampton’s dire international students situation started during the pandemic, and the city “had no choice to deal with it.”
“We have this unreported population and after years of having many international students come to the city and live here, we’ve seen a proliferation of illegal basement apartments, with single-detached homes being converted into multi-unit dwellings where people rent to students,” Santos said.
She said that due to what she said is a lack of proper student housing in the city, “they end up in these horrible situations where landlords are exploiting them.”
Ads on Facebook Marketplace, Kijiji and other classified sites have increasingly included “friends with benefits” as a so-called bonus for prospective tenants.
Concerned residents have begun sharing those ads with councillors, including one first reported by 6ixBuzzTV that gave potential renters the option of free rent, food and a $200 shopping bonus “for those who are okay with friends-with-benefits relationship.”
#REPORT: ‘Disgusting’ apartment ad offering ‘friends with benefits’ discount shared at Brampton council meeting. pic.twitter.com/TAqT7s8YQS
— 6ixBuzzTV (@6ixbuzztv) September 9, 2024
“Because of cultural dynamics, many of these young women don’t even understand sexuality, don’t even understand consent, some of them are completely inexperienced, so the term ‘friends with benefits’ makes it even more horrible, especially if they’re already struggling to find a place to live or the financial means to pay for it,” Santos said.
She noted that some of these young women have ended up pregnant and don’t know what to do because of the shame tied to it, so they don’t want to go home.
Worse yet, others are committing suicide and being shipped home in coffins, Santos said.
Brampton is the first municipality to have a charter related to international students’ quality of life and part of the Residential Rental Licensing (RRL) pilot program centres on housing.
But there’s only so much municipalities can do.
“The Landlord Tenant Board is provincial, it’s one of our biggest problems as a municipality,” Santos said, pointing out that she believes the licensing of landlords should be treated similar to a business.
She added that if a landlord makes a complaint, the municipality can’t deal with it, only the Landlord Tenant Board can.
‘ONE BIG ROOM’: Brampton landlord tries to target families of three for rental
“And the list of complaints with them is so long that the tenants, the bad tenants, end up being there for years.”
Santos supported two motions put forward at the Sept. 4 session by Councillor Dennis Keenan, who told the Sun in a statement that his area “has seen an increase of derelict rental properties operated by slum landlords,” and is often sent photos of properties and ads targeting students, mostly women.
Due to the RRL, the city is hiring 39 new bylaw officers to enforce the rules the municipality can control when it comes to dealing with landlords by ensuring they maintain property and health and safety standards.
Keenan added that he looks forward to “working with the province to assist us in how we at the city can move forward with action to put a stop to the squalor-like conditions that we see some students living in.”
Mayor Patrick Brown told the Sun that the city’s enforcement teams are “diligently and professionally responding to a wide range of complaints and conducting thorough investigations.”
He added: “We have heard loud and clear from our residents that we can’t turn a blind eye to these infractions. The city of Brampton will not tolerate slum landlords!”
Rowena Santos on Instagram: "The pause has been lifted and it’s back. Important updates to @CityBrampton’s Residential Rental Licensing (RRL) Pilot Program have been approved by Brampton City Council. 🏡 Learn about the changes aimed at enhancing re
78 likes, 24 comments - rowenasantosbrampton on March 28, 2024: "The pause has been lifted and it’s back. Important updates to @CityBrampton’s Residential Rental Licensing (RRL) Pilot Program have been approved by Brampton City Council. 🏡 Learn about the changes aimed at enhancing rental...
instagram.com
Female international students targeted for prostitution by Brampton landlords: Councillor
A Brampton city councillor claims that rental ads are exploiting desperate international student girls and prostituting them for rent.
When will Canada emerge from its smug 9/11 terror slumber?
Author of the article:Brad Hunter
Published Sep 10, 2024 • Last updated 1 day ago • 3 minute read
Mounir el-Motassadeq was the financier of the 9/11 terror attacks, led by his buddy, Mohammed Atta.
Mounir el-Motassadeq was the financier of the 9/11 terror attacks, led by his buddy, Mohammed Atta.
On a stunning September morning 23 years ago, hell, heartache and horror came from the skies.
By the end of that terrible day, nearly 3,000 people were dead. It wasn’t a hurricane, earthquake, pandemic or tidal wave.
The villains that day in New York, Washington and in a Pennsylvania field were religious fanatics juiced on hate and bloodlust.
For many of us, 9/11 was the most profound day of our lifetime. It was our turn to deal with an event as monumental as the assassination of U.S. President John F. Kennedy.
At the time of the attacks, I was working for the New York Post and was in the city when terror struck. For months I lived and breathed that horror with the knowledge that al-Qaida could attack and kill again at any time.
Hundreds of terrorism attacks later, it appears as though Canada learned nothing from that day, comfortable in our anti-American smugness. We are the victims of our own peculiar faculty lounge aesthetic.
Right now, the signals are there that this country’s criminal complacency — particularly over the last nine years — will carry a heavy price in blood and tears when the cheque comes.
READY FOR FUN: Alleged ISIS fighter John Maguire is believed to have been radicalized while still living in Canada.
READY FOR FUN: Alleged ISIS fighter John Maguire is believed to have been radicalized while still living in Canada.
Let’s take a peek at the last six weeks.
— Niagara Regional Police arrested Taha Sleiman, 21, in Niagara Falls. Cops alleged he was making improvised explosive devices, a terror treat if ever there was one. Sleiman was charged with making, possessing, care and control of an explosive device and unlawful possession of explosives.
— Pakistan citizen and Canadian resident Muhammad Shahzeb Khan, 20, (what was he doing in this country?) was arrested in Quebec on his way to New York City. He had allegedly planned a massive attack on the Big Apple’s Jews. The timing was going to be … Oct. 7.
— Accused father-son terror tag team Ahmed Fouad Mostafa Eldidi, 62, and Mostafa Eldidi, 26, were arrested at a Richmond Hill hotel in early August. RCMP alleged they planned to murder en masse at the behest of the Islamic State death cult.
Extra edition of the New York Post on 9/11. Presses were rolling by noon. Photo by HANDOUT /NEW YORK POST
On that day more than two decades ago in New York, my big question was how the 19 terrorists slipped into the country? We ask that daily in Canada now.
Even as a Canadian citizen with a job at one of the country’s most famed newspapers, the INS still crawled all over me.
In 2024, being a citizen or resident of Canada should rightly be met with suspicion at the U.S. border.
Like playing for the New York Yankees, killing a slew of Americans in the cradle of that country’s greatness is the apex of a terrorist’s career. America now knows their neighbour has embraced a troubling immigration policy — that threatens American lives.
We’re just too stupid to believe there’s a bullseye on us, too.
On the morning of September 11, 2001, New Yorkers woke to crisp blue skies following a storm that had soaked America's northeastern seaboard the day before. The cloudless, beautiful sky was little portent of the dark, history-changing day that was to come but would remain etched on the memory of those involved.
How did someone like Ahmed Fouad Mostafa Eldidi breeze into the country apparently without scrutiny? How did he get citizenship?
The FBI alleged that Muhammad Shahzeb Khan was shooting for the stars by planning to unleash “the largest attack on U.S. soil since 9/11.” He is charged in Canada and the U.S. with participating in or supporting a terrorist group.
Our government seems oblivious. There is little urgency. Steady ahead. Skip the scrutiny because, well, that might offend various diaspora voting blocks.
We’ll just keep our fingers crossed.
In the dark days after 9/11, I attended more funerals in a couple of months than most people do in a lifetime.
Twenty-three years later, those days and mental images still linger.
The fear hasn’t gone away either. It’s only increased. No amount of finger-crossing and virtue signalling will change that.
bhunter@postmedia.com
@HunterTOSun
torontosun.com
Author of the article:Brad Hunter
Published Sep 10, 2024 • Last updated 1 day ago • 3 minute read
Mounir el-Motassadeq was the financier of the 9/11 terror attacks, led by his buddy, Mohammed Atta.
Mounir el-Motassadeq was the financier of the 9/11 terror attacks, led by his buddy, Mohammed Atta.
On a stunning September morning 23 years ago, hell, heartache and horror came from the skies.
By the end of that terrible day, nearly 3,000 people were dead. It wasn’t a hurricane, earthquake, pandemic or tidal wave.
The villains that day in New York, Washington and in a Pennsylvania field were religious fanatics juiced on hate and bloodlust.
For many of us, 9/11 was the most profound day of our lifetime. It was our turn to deal with an event as monumental as the assassination of U.S. President John F. Kennedy.
At the time of the attacks, I was working for the New York Post and was in the city when terror struck. For months I lived and breathed that horror with the knowledge that al-Qaida could attack and kill again at any time.
Hundreds of terrorism attacks later, it appears as though Canada learned nothing from that day, comfortable in our anti-American smugness. We are the victims of our own peculiar faculty lounge aesthetic.
Right now, the signals are there that this country’s criminal complacency — particularly over the last nine years — will carry a heavy price in blood and tears when the cheque comes.
READY FOR FUN: Alleged ISIS fighter John Maguire is believed to have been radicalized while still living in Canada.
READY FOR FUN: Alleged ISIS fighter John Maguire is believed to have been radicalized while still living in Canada.
Let’s take a peek at the last six weeks.
— Niagara Regional Police arrested Taha Sleiman, 21, in Niagara Falls. Cops alleged he was making improvised explosive devices, a terror treat if ever there was one. Sleiman was charged with making, possessing, care and control of an explosive device and unlawful possession of explosives.
— Pakistan citizen and Canadian resident Muhammad Shahzeb Khan, 20, (what was he doing in this country?) was arrested in Quebec on his way to New York City. He had allegedly planned a massive attack on the Big Apple’s Jews. The timing was going to be … Oct. 7.
— Accused father-son terror tag team Ahmed Fouad Mostafa Eldidi, 62, and Mostafa Eldidi, 26, were arrested at a Richmond Hill hotel in early August. RCMP alleged they planned to murder en masse at the behest of the Islamic State death cult.
Extra edition of the New York Post on 9/11. Presses were rolling by noon. Photo by HANDOUT /NEW YORK POST
On that day more than two decades ago in New York, my big question was how the 19 terrorists slipped into the country? We ask that daily in Canada now.
Even as a Canadian citizen with a job at one of the country’s most famed newspapers, the INS still crawled all over me.
In 2024, being a citizen or resident of Canada should rightly be met with suspicion at the U.S. border.
Like playing for the New York Yankees, killing a slew of Americans in the cradle of that country’s greatness is the apex of a terrorist’s career. America now knows their neighbour has embraced a troubling immigration policy — that threatens American lives.
We’re just too stupid to believe there’s a bullseye on us, too.
On the morning of September 11, 2001, New Yorkers woke to crisp blue skies following a storm that had soaked America's northeastern seaboard the day before. The cloudless, beautiful sky was little portent of the dark, history-changing day that was to come but would remain etched on the memory of those involved.
How did someone like Ahmed Fouad Mostafa Eldidi breeze into the country apparently without scrutiny? How did he get citizenship?
The FBI alleged that Muhammad Shahzeb Khan was shooting for the stars by planning to unleash “the largest attack on U.S. soil since 9/11.” He is charged in Canada and the U.S. with participating in or supporting a terrorist group.
Our government seems oblivious. There is little urgency. Steady ahead. Skip the scrutiny because, well, that might offend various diaspora voting blocks.
We’ll just keep our fingers crossed.
In the dark days after 9/11, I attended more funerals in a couple of months than most people do in a lifetime.
Twenty-three years later, those days and mental images still linger.
The fear hasn’t gone away either. It’s only increased. No amount of finger-crossing and virtue signalling will change that.
bhunter@postmedia.com
@HunterTOSun
HUNTER: When will Canada emerge from its smug 9/11 terror slumber?
On a stunning September morning 23 years ago, hell, heartache and horror came from the skies.
CBC 'can do better,' ombudsman says, after host cited for editorializing
Author of the articleostmedia News
Published Sep 11, 2024 • 1 minute read
Host Ian Hanomansing has been cited for editorializing during a 2023 broadcast of the CBC Radio show Cross Country Checkup, according to Blacklock’s Reporter.
The CBC’s ombudsman said Hanomansing strayed from being balanced when it came to a contentious issue and instead offered a “value judgment” when he said people “want more immigrants to come to Canada.”
“It was simply too easy to interpret these remarks as a value judgment,” wrote ombudsman Jack Nagler. “I agree that CBC can do better.”
The broadcast in question featured an interview with Immigration Minister Marc Miller and asked, “Is it fair to increase immigration when housing is scarce?”
Hanomansing’s comments that record-high quotas were indispensable led to listener complaints.
“We welcome immigrants,” said radio host. “They’re essential to this country and we want more immigrants to come to Canada. We invite and rely on immigrants to come to this country.”
He also called immigration “an essential part of the Canadian experience” and said immigrants were “filling much-needed jobs from health care to high tech to the trades.”
Cross Country Checkup senior producer Richard Goddard defended the broadcast as unbiased.
“We were not debating whether immigration to Canada is good or bad, but we did include views on the possible housing impacts of the relatively high level of immigration,” said Goddard.
But the ombudsman said CBC hosts should not confuse opinion with fact.
“In other words, don’t put your finger on the scale when it comes to determinations about which sides are right or wrong on a matter of public controversy,” wrote Nagler.
“Use phrasing that is unlikely to be interpreted as a value judgment. Rather than saying that immigration has been an ‘essential’ part of the Canadian experience, perhaps it could be described as a ‘prominent’ one.”
Last year, Canada let in 471,550 landed immigrants, another 766,520 migrant workers and 1,040,985 foreign students.
torontosun.com
Author of the article
ostmedia NewsPublished Sep 11, 2024 • 1 minute read
Host Ian Hanomansing has been cited for editorializing during a 2023 broadcast of the CBC Radio show Cross Country Checkup, according to Blacklock’s Reporter.
The CBC’s ombudsman said Hanomansing strayed from being balanced when it came to a contentious issue and instead offered a “value judgment” when he said people “want more immigrants to come to Canada.”
“It was simply too easy to interpret these remarks as a value judgment,” wrote ombudsman Jack Nagler. “I agree that CBC can do better.”
The broadcast in question featured an interview with Immigration Minister Marc Miller and asked, “Is it fair to increase immigration when housing is scarce?”
Hanomansing’s comments that record-high quotas were indispensable led to listener complaints.
“We welcome immigrants,” said radio host. “They’re essential to this country and we want more immigrants to come to Canada. We invite and rely on immigrants to come to this country.”
He also called immigration “an essential part of the Canadian experience” and said immigrants were “filling much-needed jobs from health care to high tech to the trades.”
Cross Country Checkup senior producer Richard Goddard defended the broadcast as unbiased.
“We were not debating whether immigration to Canada is good or bad, but we did include views on the possible housing impacts of the relatively high level of immigration,” said Goddard.
But the ombudsman said CBC hosts should not confuse opinion with fact.
“In other words, don’t put your finger on the scale when it comes to determinations about which sides are right or wrong on a matter of public controversy,” wrote Nagler.
“Use phrasing that is unlikely to be interpreted as a value judgment. Rather than saying that immigration has been an ‘essential’ part of the Canadian experience, perhaps it could be described as a ‘prominent’ one.”
Last year, Canada let in 471,550 landed immigrants, another 766,520 migrant workers and 1,040,985 foreign students.
CBC 'can do better,' ombudsman says, after host cited for editorializing
The CBC’s ombudsman said Ian Hanomansing strayed from being balanced when it came to a contentious issue on the show Cross Country Checkup.
Texas mom recounts how migrant ‘monsters’ raped, strangled daughter, 12
Author of the articleenette Wilford
Published Sep 11, 2024 • Last updated 1 day ago • 2 minute read
A Texas mother broke down while telling U.S. Congress about her daughter’s brutal murder, allegedly by two illegal immigrants from Venezuela, and accused the Biden-Harris administration of being “responsible” for her death.
Alexis Nungaray recounted to lawmakers how her 12-year-old daughter Jocelyn Nungaray was sexually assaulted, killed, then dumped in a bayou outside Houston.
“She was strangled to death. She had no clothing from the waist down,” the devastated mother said, according to the New York Post.
“Her hands and her ankles were tied and thrown under the bridge of water like she was nothing but garbage.”
The two suspects, Franklin Jose Pena Ramos, 26, and Jose Rangel Martinez, 21, allegedly bound the girl’s hands before the assault and slaying.
The alleged attackers illegally entered the United States earlier this year and were released into the country, officials said.
Pena Ramos claimed he feared for his safety if he was sent back to Venezuela, while Rangel Martinez was fitted with an ankle monitor. However, authorities removed it after determining he had no known criminal past, the Post reported.
“Because of the Biden-Harris administration open border policies, catch and release, they were enrolled in the Alternatives to Detention program,” Nungaray said of Jocelyn’s suspected killers.
“This meant that they were released into the United States,” she continued, noting, “It was not even a full three weeks later that they would take my daughter Jocelyn Nungaray’s life.”
Surveillance footage showed the girl and the two men walking near a bridge over the bayou.
The men were later seen leaving the area, with Jocelyn nowhere to be seen.
“They were down there for two whole hours,” Nungaray said. “I can’t even fathom what was going through Jocelyn’s mind — the amount of fear she was feeling in the last moments of her life.”
The mother added: “Individuals like that do not have heart. They are nothing but monsters who are predators, and those are the kind of individuals that we so openly let into this country.”
nypost.com
torontosun.com
Author of the article
enette WilfordPublished Sep 11, 2024 • Last updated 1 day ago • 2 minute read
A Texas mother broke down while telling U.S. Congress about her daughter’s brutal murder, allegedly by two illegal immigrants from Venezuela, and accused the Biden-Harris administration of being “responsible” for her death.
Alexis Nungaray recounted to lawmakers how her 12-year-old daughter Jocelyn Nungaray was sexually assaulted, killed, then dumped in a bayou outside Houston.
“She was strangled to death. She had no clothing from the waist down,” the devastated mother said, according to the New York Post.
“Her hands and her ankles were tied and thrown under the bridge of water like she was nothing but garbage.”
The two suspects, Franklin Jose Pena Ramos, 26, and Jose Rangel Martinez, 21, allegedly bound the girl’s hands before the assault and slaying.
The alleged attackers illegally entered the United States earlier this year and were released into the country, officials said.
Pena Ramos claimed he feared for his safety if he was sent back to Venezuela, while Rangel Martinez was fitted with an ankle monitor. However, authorities removed it after determining he had no known criminal past, the Post reported.
“Because of the Biden-Harris administration open border policies, catch and release, they were enrolled in the Alternatives to Detention program,” Nungaray said of Jocelyn’s suspected killers.
“This meant that they were released into the United States,” she continued, noting, “It was not even a full three weeks later that they would take my daughter Jocelyn Nungaray’s life.”
Surveillance footage showed the girl and the two men walking near a bridge over the bayou.
The men were later seen leaving the area, with Jocelyn nowhere to be seen.
“They were down there for two whole hours,” Nungaray said. “I can’t even fathom what was going through Jocelyn’s mind — the amount of fear she was feeling in the last moments of her life.”
The mother added: “Individuals like that do not have heart. They are nothing but monsters who are predators, and those are the kind of individuals that we so openly let into this country.”
Jocelyn Nungaray’s mother tells Congress 12-year-old was raped, strangled by migrant ‘monsters’
The two suspects — 26-year-old Franklin Jose Pena Ramos and 21-year-old Johan Jose Rangel Martinez — allegedly bound Jocelyn Nungaray’s hands before carrying out the atrocities an…
nypost.com
Texas mom recounts how migrant ‘monsters’ raped, strangled daughter, 12
A Texas mother told U.S. Congress while how her daughter was brutally killed, allegedly by two illegal immigrants from Venezuela.
The federal government is now seeking to spread its problem around the country. Alberta Premier Danielle Smith and New Brunswick Premier Blaine Higgs said this week the feds want to move thousands of refugee claimants in Ontario and Quebec around the country.
“Alberta’s government is opposed to the federal government’s plan to relocate tens of thousands of asylum claimants to Alberta, especially without any financial assistance to support the province in doing so,” Smith said in a statement Thursday.
Higgs has also balked at what he called “this sudden and unilateral proposal by Ottawa.”
According to the National Post, the feds want to send 32,500 refugees to B.C., 28,000 to Alberta, 4,952 to Nova Scotia and 4,600 to New Brunswick.
Quebec has taken 37,780 refugee applications between Jan. 1 and July 31 and Ontario has seen 55,700 claimants.
Immigration Minister Marc Miller says the Post figures are inaccurate. Clearly, though, provincial premiers are raising the alarm. Health care and social services are overwhelmed. One senior Ontario official estimates one in four people on welfare is an asylum seeker, costing the province $500,000.
The “Liberal” feds have undermined an immigration system that was once the envy of the world. They’ve created a crisis and now they want to dump it on the provinces.
It’s no wonder the premiers are fighting back.
apple.news
A man on a student visa was in court on terrorism charges, a TD bank report showed temporary workers are harming the economy, and the Trudeau government started talking about moving tens of thousands of asylum seekers across the country.
“We could open a hotel in any particular province and ship people there,” Immigration Minister Marc Miller said at the Liberal caucus retreat demonstrating how “in touch” they are outside of a Liberal caucus.
The problem is that the Trudeau government relaxed the visa requirements, in some cases waiving them. That has resulted in people who would otherwise be denied entrance to Canada being given permission to fly here and claim immediate asylum.
apple.news
India is currently the top source country for people claiming asylum with more than 15,000 claims in the first six months of this year, claims from Mexico are at nearly 9,000. People coming here from India and Mexico, with rare exception, are not refugees, they are economic migrants abusing a system meant to protect people from persecution.
The Liberals could fix this problem by fixing the visa system, but they’d rather talk about building hotels, busing people across the country and be arguing with premiers than looking for solutions.
When it isn’t letting the visa system rot, we have questions about how well we vet people coming into the country. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was asked about the strength of our vetting system during a news conference in Montreal. To listen to Trudeau, there are no problems with the system.
Our asylum claims are off the charts, the visa system is broken, we can’t properly vet people coming into Canada and now a report from TD Bank that says the over reliance on temporary foreign workers is hurting the economy.
All of these problems have been created by the Trudeau Liberals and their mismanagement of the system.
“Alberta’s government is opposed to the federal government’s plan to relocate tens of thousands of asylum claimants to Alberta, especially without any financial assistance to support the province in doing so,” Smith said in a statement Thursday.
Higgs has also balked at what he called “this sudden and unilateral proposal by Ottawa.”
According to the National Post, the feds want to send 32,500 refugees to B.C., 28,000 to Alberta, 4,952 to Nova Scotia and 4,600 to New Brunswick.
Quebec has taken 37,780 refugee applications between Jan. 1 and July 31 and Ontario has seen 55,700 claimants.
Immigration Minister Marc Miller says the Post figures are inaccurate. Clearly, though, provincial premiers are raising the alarm. Health care and social services are overwhelmed. One senior Ontario official estimates one in four people on welfare is an asylum seeker, costing the province $500,000.
The “Liberal” feds have undermined an immigration system that was once the envy of the world. They’ve created a crisis and now they want to dump it on the provinces.
It’s no wonder the premiers are fighting back.
EDITORIAL: Fix the mess, don’t spread it around — Toronto Sun
The foolhardy changes made by the government of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to Canada’s immigration and refugee claimant programs have broken a once exemplary system. As a nation, we’re more than willing to open our arms to newcomers, especially those fleeing war or famine. Whether it be...
“We could open a hotel in any particular province and ship people there,” Immigration Minister Marc Miller said at the Liberal caucus retreat demonstrating how “in touch” they are outside of a Liberal caucus.
The problem is that the Trudeau government relaxed the visa requirements, in some cases waiving them. That has resulted in people who would otherwise be denied entrance to Canada being given permission to fly here and claim immediate asylum.
LILLEY: Trudeau has broken every aspect of our immigration system — Toronto Sun
System is falling apart due to mismanagement by Trudeau's Liberal team.
The Liberals could fix this problem by fixing the visa system, but they’d rather talk about building hotels, busing people across the country and be arguing with premiers than looking for solutions.
When it isn’t letting the visa system rot, we have questions about how well we vet people coming into the country. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was asked about the strength of our vetting system during a news conference in Montreal. To listen to Trudeau, there are no problems with the system.
Our asylum claims are off the charts, the visa system is broken, we can’t properly vet people coming into Canada and now a report from TD Bank that says the over reliance on temporary foreign workers is hurting the economy.
All of these problems have been created by the Trudeau Liberals and their mismanagement of the system.
More liberal party propaganda on CBC. One thing about CBC staff, they know who keeps the bonuses coming.CBC 'can do better,' ombudsman says, after host cited for editorializing
Author of the article
Published Sep 11, 2024 • 1 minute read
Host Ian Hanomansing has been cited for editorializing during a 2023 broadcast of the CBC Radio show Cross Country Checkup, according to Blacklock’s Reporter.
The CBC’s ombudsman said Hanomansing strayed from being balanced when it came to a contentious issue and instead offered a “value judgment” when he said people “want more immigrants to come to Canada.”
“It was simply too easy to interpret these remarks as a value judgment,” wrote ombudsman Jack Nagler. “I agree that CBC can do better.”
The broadcast in question featured an interview with Immigration Minister Marc Miller and asked, “Is it fair to increase immigration when housing is scarce?”
Hanomansing’s comments that record-high quotas were indispensable led to listener complaints.
“We welcome immigrants,” said radio host. “They’re essential to this country and we want more immigrants to come to Canada. We invite and rely on immigrants to come to this country.”
He also called immigration “an essential part of the Canadian experience” and said immigrants were “filling much-needed jobs from health care to high tech to the trades.”
Cross Country Checkup senior producer Richard Goddard defended the broadcast as unbiased.
“We were not debating whether immigration to Canada is good or bad, but we did include views on the possible housing impacts of the relatively high level of immigration,” said Goddard.
But the ombudsman said CBC hosts should not confuse opinion with fact.
“In other words, don’t put your finger on the scale when it comes to determinations about which sides are right or wrong on a matter of public controversy,” wrote Nagler.
“Use phrasing that is unlikely to be interpreted as a value judgment. Rather than saying that immigration has been an ‘essential’ part of the Canadian experience, perhaps it could be described as a ‘prominent’ one.”
Last year, Canada let in 471,550 landed immigrants, another 766,520 migrant workers and 1,040,985 foreign students.
CBC 'can do better,' ombudsman says, after host cited for editorializing
The CBC’s ombudsman said Ian Hanomansing strayed from being balanced when it came to a contentious issue on the show Cross Country Checkup.
Yonge-Dundas in Toronto yesterday. I bet the property value went up.
Streamer Adin Ross needs to know why ‘so many Indians’ live in Canada
Author of the articleenette Wilford
Published Sep 12, 2024 • Last updated 2 days ago • 2 minute read
Video game streamer Adin Ross has moved to Toronto and immediately noticed one thing — there are many people from India living in the city.
Perhaps it was such a glaring difference for the American, and the overwhelming diversity in Toronto appeared to be too much for Ross to handle, so he took to social media to try to find the answer.
“Somebody just needs to explain why,” Ross implores to the camera. “Why? Why are there so many Indians in Canada? What am I missing here?”
He continues: “Can somebody please explain why the f— there’s so many Indians here? Please. I gotta understand why. Please. Please tell me. Please. Can somebody please explain?”
Ross’ interview with Donald Trump last month went viral after the former U.S. president insisted Prime Minister Justin Trudeau could be the son of Fidel Castro.
“He’s turned very liberal, actually they say he’s the son of Fidel Castro, and could be,” Trump told Ross. “Anything’s possible in this world, you know?”
Given that Ross has millions of followers across different online platforms including Kick, Twitch, YouTube and Instagram, he was bound to get an array of answers about the influx of Indians in Canada — and Trudeau was mentioned in many of the responses.
“We ask the same question every day,” one person wrote.
Another pointed out: “Trudeau has to get his votes somehow.”
A third user noted: “I see Indians more than Canadians every day,” while another commented, “Even the pre-mass immigration Indians are wondering how the hell they moved from India years ago to end up right back in India.”
One commenter added: “Trudeau destroyed this country by not just adding a substantial amount of a specific population, but also destroying the reputation of respected ones that came in the 1970s/very early 2000s. Vote him out.”
instagram.com
instagram.com
torontosun.com
Author of the article
enette WilfordPublished Sep 12, 2024 • Last updated 2 days ago • 2 minute read
Video game streamer Adin Ross has moved to Toronto and immediately noticed one thing — there are many people from India living in the city.
Perhaps it was such a glaring difference for the American, and the overwhelming diversity in Toronto appeared to be too much for Ross to handle, so he took to social media to try to find the answer.
“Somebody just needs to explain why,” Ross implores to the camera. “Why? Why are there so many Indians in Canada? What am I missing here?”
He continues: “Can somebody please explain why the f— there’s so many Indians here? Please. I gotta understand why. Please. Please tell me. Please. Can somebody please explain?”
Ross’ interview with Donald Trump last month went viral after the former U.S. president insisted Prime Minister Justin Trudeau could be the son of Fidel Castro.
“He’s turned very liberal, actually they say he’s the son of Fidel Castro, and could be,” Trump told Ross. “Anything’s possible in this world, you know?”
Given that Ross has millions of followers across different online platforms including Kick, Twitch, YouTube and Instagram, he was bound to get an array of answers about the influx of Indians in Canada — and Trudeau was mentioned in many of the responses.
“We ask the same question every day,” one person wrote.
Another pointed out: “Trudeau has to get his votes somehow.”
A third user noted: “I see Indians more than Canadians every day,” while another commented, “Even the pre-mass immigration Indians are wondering how the hell they moved from India years ago to end up right back in India.”
One commenter added: “Trudeau destroyed this country by not just adding a substantial amount of a specific population, but also destroying the reputation of respected ones that came in the 1970s/very early 2000s. Vote him out.”
AR on Instagram: "Make America Great Again 🇺🇸"
1M likes, 13K comments - adinross on August 5, 2024: "Make America Great Again 🇺🇸".
instagram.com
6ixBuzz TV 6️⃣🐝 on Instagram: "People aren’t happy after @adinross asks why there’s so many Indians in Canada 👀 He just recently moved here. 🇨🇦🧐6️⃣🐝"
60K likes, 4,175 comments - 6ixbuzztv on September 11, 2024: "People aren’t happy after @adinross asks why there’s so many Indians in Canada 👀 He just recently moved here. 🇨🇦🧐6️⃣🐝".
instagram.com
Streamer Adin Ross needs to know why ‘so many Indians’ live in Canada
Video game streamer Adin Ross has moved to Toronto and immediately noticed there are many people from India living in the city.
Little-known program dominates Canada's massive guest-worker scheme
The International Mobility Program now brings in by far the most newcomers — with more than one million in the country now
Author of the articleouglas Todd
Published Sep 12, 2024 • Last updated 1 day ago • 5 minute read
The International Mobility Program now accounts for by far the largest stream of guest workers in Canada, bringing in more than one million.
The International Mobility Program now accounts for by far the largest stream of guest workers in Canada, bringing in more than one million.
Union leader Mark Olsen is frustrated Canadians know almost nothing about Ottawa’s international mobility program. And he’s afraid company bosses want it that way.
The program is the vast federal guest worker program that now brings by far the most newcomers into Canada — with more than one million in the country now.
It’s also the program that Olsen believes makes it most easy for employers to exploit guest workers, which in turn harms Canadian workers.
As the western manager of the Laborers International Union of North America, Olsen said that the international mobility program is drawing more than four times as many guest workers as the more discussed temporary foreign workers program.
Two weeks ago Prime Minister Justin Trudeau promised to modestly trim the temporary foreign workers program by up to 80,000 workers after protests that it was responsible for a high number of low-wage workers at a time of high unemployment among Canadian young people.
An Angus Reid Institute poll released Tuesday shows that 56 per cent of Canadians believe the Liberals are bringing in too many temporary workers, which they think is making it harder to access housing and obtain decent wages.
Olsen believes Trudeau’s gesture with the temporary foreign workers program is window-dressing. If the past is a guide, he said, the federal government and corporations will just use the decline of that program to funnel more foreign workers into the expanding international mobility program.
The government’s strategy, Olsen said, will continue to “institutionalize foreign worker exploitation, discrimination and abuse, distort the labour market, suppress Canadians’ wages and lead to a loss of training opportunities and jobs for Canadian workers, including Indigenous people and women.”
There is a need, Olsen said, for qualified people to come from other countries to work in Canada. That’s especially the case in Canada’s gigantic construction industry, which employs most members of the Laborers International Union of North America. But guest workers, Olsen said, must be invited to the country in a way that’s fair both to them and to Canadian workers.
The major defect in the international mobility program, Olsen said, is that, unlike the temporary foreign workers program, it doesn’t require Canadian employers to provide evidence to the government that they’re unable to find a Canadian to do the job.
IMP
The guest worker track known as the international mobility program has expanded dramatically since the Liberals gained power in 2015.
“This has made the IMP (international mobility program) ripe for abuse of both the system and the temporary worker, and has fuelled explosive growth under the program,” said Olsen.
A second problem with the international mobility program is that employers are allowed to pay the foreign workers significantly less than they pay Canadians in the same job, whether they’re in the field of high tech, health care, retail or construction. That’s because bosses only have to commit to paying foreign workers a wage that is higher, even only slightly higher, than the median Canadian salary, which Olsen said is in the $23-an-hour range.
That leads to international mobility program workers often doing the same tasks as Canadian workers at far lower wages.
Obviously, Olsen said, the big wage disparity hands bosses an incentive to hire cheap labour through that program, rather than seek Canadian applicants.
“It results in employers paying substandard wages and often no benefits to foreign workers,” Olsen said in a joint memo with Eric Olsen, his brother, who is the political director for the western arm of Laborers International Union, which has about 400,000 members in the U.S. and 150,000 in Canada. “It also allows employers to pay Canadian workers less than the market would ordinarily require, distorting the market.”
The B.C. Building Trades this year put together a report on migration, with case studies showing how B.C. employers paid foreign workers much less than Canadians during construction of the Golden Ears Bridge, the Murray River mine project and the Canada Line.
Since 2015, the Liberal government has dramatically increased the number of temporary residents in Canada, to about 2.8 million. Immigration Minister Marc Miller said this year that nine per cent are in the temporary foreign workers program stream, 44 per cent are employed in Canada through the international mobility program category and another 43 per cent are foreign students, most of whom are allowed to work.
However, Mark Olsen is on to something when he worries ordinary Canadians have no idea about the country’s many guest worker programs — and the often crucial differences between them.
Olsen
Mark Olsen of the Laborers International Union of North America (LIUNA).
Canada’s migration system is complex and confusing. Even politicians, pundits and pollsters often make comments that suggest they mistakenly think the temporary foreign workers program is the only Canadian stream for “temporary” workers. It doesn’t help that the term, international mobility program, is itself fuzzy.
In the face of the public’s ignorance, which Mark Olsen believes companies capitalize on, the leaders of the Laborers International Union want to reform Canada’s guest-worker programs.
One top recommendation is that bosses using the international mobility program must prove there is a need for each guest worker. Such declarations exist with the temporary foreign workers program, when employers fill out a document called a labour market impact assessment.
And since news reports frequently arise about abuse and deception in regard to the rules of the guest worker system, the union says “there must be proper enforcement and significant penalties.”
In addition, the union wants all foreign workers in Canada to “have the same rights as Canadian workers” and “be paid the same as Canadian workers in wages and benefits.”
It also recommends providing foreign workers “a pathway to Canadian citizenship.” As the union’s policy paper says: “If these workers are good enough to be invited here to build our country, they are good enough to stay and build their families and communities.”
In regard to these last two reforms, Mark Olsen acknowledged that there is sometimes resistance from members of his union.
Temp workers
Fifty-four per cent say the foreign worker system is bad for ‘the labour market for Canadian citizens.’ Source: Angus Reid Institute poll, September 2024
Given changing public sentiment in Canada, that’s not surprising. One key finding in this week’s Angus Reid poll is that only 24 per cent of Canadians believe guest workers should be offered a route to citizenship.
Nevertheless, Mark Olsen said after he talks to members about the union recommendations on guest workers, they invariably end up embracing the union’s viewpoint, which he describes as “respect for all.”
dtodd@postmedia.com
angusreid.org
torontosun.com
The International Mobility Program now brings in by far the most newcomers — with more than one million in the country now
Author of the article
ouglas ToddPublished Sep 12, 2024 • Last updated 1 day ago • 5 minute read
The International Mobility Program now accounts for by far the largest stream of guest workers in Canada, bringing in more than one million.
The International Mobility Program now accounts for by far the largest stream of guest workers in Canada, bringing in more than one million.
Union leader Mark Olsen is frustrated Canadians know almost nothing about Ottawa’s international mobility program. And he’s afraid company bosses want it that way.
The program is the vast federal guest worker program that now brings by far the most newcomers into Canada — with more than one million in the country now.
It’s also the program that Olsen believes makes it most easy for employers to exploit guest workers, which in turn harms Canadian workers.
As the western manager of the Laborers International Union of North America, Olsen said that the international mobility program is drawing more than four times as many guest workers as the more discussed temporary foreign workers program.
Two weeks ago Prime Minister Justin Trudeau promised to modestly trim the temporary foreign workers program by up to 80,000 workers after protests that it was responsible for a high number of low-wage workers at a time of high unemployment among Canadian young people.
An Angus Reid Institute poll released Tuesday shows that 56 per cent of Canadians believe the Liberals are bringing in too many temporary workers, which they think is making it harder to access housing and obtain decent wages.
Olsen believes Trudeau’s gesture with the temporary foreign workers program is window-dressing. If the past is a guide, he said, the federal government and corporations will just use the decline of that program to funnel more foreign workers into the expanding international mobility program.
The government’s strategy, Olsen said, will continue to “institutionalize foreign worker exploitation, discrimination and abuse, distort the labour market, suppress Canadians’ wages and lead to a loss of training opportunities and jobs for Canadian workers, including Indigenous people and women.”
There is a need, Olsen said, for qualified people to come from other countries to work in Canada. That’s especially the case in Canada’s gigantic construction industry, which employs most members of the Laborers International Union of North America. But guest workers, Olsen said, must be invited to the country in a way that’s fair both to them and to Canadian workers.
The major defect in the international mobility program, Olsen said, is that, unlike the temporary foreign workers program, it doesn’t require Canadian employers to provide evidence to the government that they’re unable to find a Canadian to do the job.
IMP
The guest worker track known as the international mobility program has expanded dramatically since the Liberals gained power in 2015.
“This has made the IMP (international mobility program) ripe for abuse of both the system and the temporary worker, and has fuelled explosive growth under the program,” said Olsen.
A second problem with the international mobility program is that employers are allowed to pay the foreign workers significantly less than they pay Canadians in the same job, whether they’re in the field of high tech, health care, retail or construction. That’s because bosses only have to commit to paying foreign workers a wage that is higher, even only slightly higher, than the median Canadian salary, which Olsen said is in the $23-an-hour range.
That leads to international mobility program workers often doing the same tasks as Canadian workers at far lower wages.
Obviously, Olsen said, the big wage disparity hands bosses an incentive to hire cheap labour through that program, rather than seek Canadian applicants.
“It results in employers paying substandard wages and often no benefits to foreign workers,” Olsen said in a joint memo with Eric Olsen, his brother, who is the political director for the western arm of Laborers International Union, which has about 400,000 members in the U.S. and 150,000 in Canada. “It also allows employers to pay Canadian workers less than the market would ordinarily require, distorting the market.”
The B.C. Building Trades this year put together a report on migration, with case studies showing how B.C. employers paid foreign workers much less than Canadians during construction of the Golden Ears Bridge, the Murray River mine project and the Canada Line.
Since 2015, the Liberal government has dramatically increased the number of temporary residents in Canada, to about 2.8 million. Immigration Minister Marc Miller said this year that nine per cent are in the temporary foreign workers program stream, 44 per cent are employed in Canada through the international mobility program category and another 43 per cent are foreign students, most of whom are allowed to work.
However, Mark Olsen is on to something when he worries ordinary Canadians have no idea about the country’s many guest worker programs — and the often crucial differences between them.
Olsen
Mark Olsen of the Laborers International Union of North America (LIUNA).
Canada’s migration system is complex and confusing. Even politicians, pundits and pollsters often make comments that suggest they mistakenly think the temporary foreign workers program is the only Canadian stream for “temporary” workers. It doesn’t help that the term, international mobility program, is itself fuzzy.
In the face of the public’s ignorance, which Mark Olsen believes companies capitalize on, the leaders of the Laborers International Union want to reform Canada’s guest-worker programs.
One top recommendation is that bosses using the international mobility program must prove there is a need for each guest worker. Such declarations exist with the temporary foreign workers program, when employers fill out a document called a labour market impact assessment.
And since news reports frequently arise about abuse and deception in regard to the rules of the guest worker system, the union says “there must be proper enforcement and significant penalties.”
In addition, the union wants all foreign workers in Canada to “have the same rights as Canadian workers” and “be paid the same as Canadian workers in wages and benefits.”
It also recommends providing foreign workers “a pathway to Canadian citizenship.” As the union’s policy paper says: “If these workers are good enough to be invited here to build our country, they are good enough to stay and build their families and communities.”
In regard to these last two reforms, Mark Olsen acknowledged that there is sometimes resistance from members of his union.
Temp workers
Fifty-four per cent say the foreign worker system is bad for ‘the labour market for Canadian citizens.’ Source: Angus Reid Institute poll, September 2024
Given changing public sentiment in Canada, that’s not surprising. One key finding in this week’s Angus Reid poll is that only 24 per cent of Canadians believe guest workers should be offered a route to citizenship.
Nevertheless, Mark Olsen said after he talks to members about the union recommendations on guest workers, they invariably end up embracing the union’s viewpoint, which he describes as “respect for all.”
dtodd@postmedia.com
Temporary Foreign Workers: Canadians support reduced program; few want workers to have path to citizenship -
Majority believe program is ‘bad’ for labour market for citizens, Canada’s housing situation September 10, 2024 – As Canadians express more concern over immigration, the federal government is taking steps to rein in the number of temporary residents the country takes in. That includes changes...
angusreid.org
Little-known program dominates Canada's massive guest-worker scheme
Douglas Todd: Labour head frustrated Canadians know almost nothing about International Mobility Program. He's afraid bosses want it that way
Release secret list of alleged Nazi war criminals in Canada, say Polish and Ukrainian groups
The Canadian Polish Congress and the Association of United Ukrainian Canadians have joined calls for the identities of the alleged war criminals to be revealed.
Author of the articleavid Pugliese • Ottawa Citizen
Published Sep 12, 2024 • Last updated 1 day ago • 4 minute read
Top Nazi leaders faced war crimes trials after the Second World War but many others who took part in the Holocaust went unpunished. The Canadian government is examining whether to release a list of 900 alleged Nazi war criminals living in Canada.
Top Nazi leaders faced war crimes trials after the Second World War but many others who took part in the Holocaust went unpunished. The Canadian government is examining whether to release a list of 900 alleged Nazi war criminals living in Canada.
Canadian Polish and Ukrainian groups have joined calls for the federal government to release the full list of 900 alleged Nazi war criminals who came to this country after the war.
The list is among documents created by a 1986 federal government war-crimes commission led by Justice Jules Deschenes. For almost 40 years the federal government has refused to release the material to the public.
Library and Archives Canada is deciding whether it will release the records requested under Canada’s access to information law.
Holocaust survivors and some Jewish groups have called for a full release of the 900 names of alleged Nazi war criminals. The list is believed to contain names of Nazi collaborators from eastern European as well as Waffen SS veterans such as those from a Ukrainian division known as SS Galicia.
The Canadian Polish Congress as well as the Association of United Ukrainian Canadians have now joined calls for the identities of the alleged war criminals to be revealed.
“Many members of our community are descendants of victims and survivors of Nazi atrocities, including those perpetrated by SS Galizien,” John Tomczak, president of the Canadian Polish Congress, wrote in a letter to Leslie Weir, Librarian and Archivist of Canada. “The Canadian Polish Congress believes that the greater risk lies in secrecy and omission. The Polish-Canadian community feels that any reluctance to release these names may only deepen existing wounds.”
Tomczak wrote that by only fully confronting the truth of Canada’s history regarding Nazi war criminals can “we can hope to bring a sense of justice and closure to the many families and communities who continue to grapple with the horrors of that period.”
The Association of United Ukrainian Canadians also released a statement calling for the secrecy surrounding the list to end.
“The Association of United Ukrainian Canadians was not consulted by Library and Archives Canada – had it been, it would have unequivocally supported the release of the names,” the organization noted in a news release. “The Association of United Ukrainian Canadians has consistently fought for this history to be brought to light.”
Library and Archives Canada (LAC) in Ottawa consulted in June and July with what it called a “discrete group of individuals or organizations” about whether the list should be made public, according to documents obtained by the Ottawa Citizen.
Those consulted included some members of Canada’s Ukrainian community.
But LAC did not include Holocaust survivors nor Holocaust scholars who had advocated for a full release of the list of alleged Nazi war criminals, Jewish groups and Holocaust academics say.
The Canadian Polish Congress confirmed Wednesday it was not consulted by LAC even though its officials testified in front of a House of Commons committee about alleged war criminals.
LAC spokesman Richard Provencher did not provide details on which groups and individuals the organization consulted.
But some of the individuals and organizations advised LAC against releasing any of the information, warning it could be embarrassing or lead to prosecutions of the alleged war criminals. Other stakeholders who LAC consulted with were worried the list would embarrass Canada’s Ukrainian community or be used by Russians for propaganda purposes, the records show.
When Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, President Vladimir Putin tried to justify the incursion as a “denazification” of the Ukrainian government.
The Ukrainian Canadian Congress, which was invited by LAC to the stakeholder meetings, says it plans to go to court to stop the federal government from making public the names of alleged war criminals.
The Ukrainian Canadian Congress, or UCC, is now circulating a letter asking for donations to finance the proposed legal challenge in federal court.
The organization wants to raise $150,000, according to a copy of the Aug. 28 letter obtained by the Ottawa Citizen.
Much of the renewed debate around Nazi collaborators in Canada was prompted by a September 2023 event in which MPs of all parties gave two standing ovations to Yaroslav Hunka, a resident of North Bay, Ont. Hunka was described by then House of Commons Speaker Anthony Rota as a hero and he was thanked for his military service.
But news quickly emerged that Hunka had served in a Ukrainian Waffen SS unit which fought for the Nazis. Large numbers of soldiers from a Ukrainian Waffen SS division came to Canada after the war.
The incident became an international embarrassment for Canada as Holocaust historians, Jewish groups and the Polish government pointed out that Hunka’s unit had been involved in war crimes, including massacres of women and children. The division was also used by the Nazis to crush a national uprising in Slovakia, again prompting allegations of war crimes.
There is no evidence Hunka, now 99, was directly involved in those incidents.
But the sight of MPs cheering on a Waffen SS veteran caused intense anger among Canadians, according to documents obtained in June by the Ottawa Citizen using Canada’s access to information law.
In addition, more than 70 academics have signed a petition from the Canadian Institute for the Study of Antisemitism “calling for the release of all documentation on Nazi war criminals in Canada.”
torontosun.com
The Canadian Polish Congress and the Association of United Ukrainian Canadians have joined calls for the identities of the alleged war criminals to be revealed.
Author of the article
avid Pugliese • Ottawa CitizenPublished Sep 12, 2024 • Last updated 1 day ago • 4 minute read
Top Nazi leaders faced war crimes trials after the Second World War but many others who took part in the Holocaust went unpunished. The Canadian government is examining whether to release a list of 900 alleged Nazi war criminals living in Canada.
Top Nazi leaders faced war crimes trials after the Second World War but many others who took part in the Holocaust went unpunished. The Canadian government is examining whether to release a list of 900 alleged Nazi war criminals living in Canada.
Canadian Polish and Ukrainian groups have joined calls for the federal government to release the full list of 900 alleged Nazi war criminals who came to this country after the war.
The list is among documents created by a 1986 federal government war-crimes commission led by Justice Jules Deschenes. For almost 40 years the federal government has refused to release the material to the public.
Library and Archives Canada is deciding whether it will release the records requested under Canada’s access to information law.
Holocaust survivors and some Jewish groups have called for a full release of the 900 names of alleged Nazi war criminals. The list is believed to contain names of Nazi collaborators from eastern European as well as Waffen SS veterans such as those from a Ukrainian division known as SS Galicia.
The Canadian Polish Congress as well as the Association of United Ukrainian Canadians have now joined calls for the identities of the alleged war criminals to be revealed.
“Many members of our community are descendants of victims and survivors of Nazi atrocities, including those perpetrated by SS Galizien,” John Tomczak, president of the Canadian Polish Congress, wrote in a letter to Leslie Weir, Librarian and Archivist of Canada. “The Canadian Polish Congress believes that the greater risk lies in secrecy and omission. The Polish-Canadian community feels that any reluctance to release these names may only deepen existing wounds.”
Tomczak wrote that by only fully confronting the truth of Canada’s history regarding Nazi war criminals can “we can hope to bring a sense of justice and closure to the many families and communities who continue to grapple with the horrors of that period.”
The Association of United Ukrainian Canadians also released a statement calling for the secrecy surrounding the list to end.
“The Association of United Ukrainian Canadians was not consulted by Library and Archives Canada – had it been, it would have unequivocally supported the release of the names,” the organization noted in a news release. “The Association of United Ukrainian Canadians has consistently fought for this history to be brought to light.”
Library and Archives Canada (LAC) in Ottawa consulted in June and July with what it called a “discrete group of individuals or organizations” about whether the list should be made public, according to documents obtained by the Ottawa Citizen.
Those consulted included some members of Canada’s Ukrainian community.
But LAC did not include Holocaust survivors nor Holocaust scholars who had advocated for a full release of the list of alleged Nazi war criminals, Jewish groups and Holocaust academics say.
The Canadian Polish Congress confirmed Wednesday it was not consulted by LAC even though its officials testified in front of a House of Commons committee about alleged war criminals.
LAC spokesman Richard Provencher did not provide details on which groups and individuals the organization consulted.
But some of the individuals and organizations advised LAC against releasing any of the information, warning it could be embarrassing or lead to prosecutions of the alleged war criminals. Other stakeholders who LAC consulted with were worried the list would embarrass Canada’s Ukrainian community or be used by Russians for propaganda purposes, the records show.
When Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, President Vladimir Putin tried to justify the incursion as a “denazification” of the Ukrainian government.
The Ukrainian Canadian Congress, which was invited by LAC to the stakeholder meetings, says it plans to go to court to stop the federal government from making public the names of alleged war criminals.
The Ukrainian Canadian Congress, or UCC, is now circulating a letter asking for donations to finance the proposed legal challenge in federal court.
The organization wants to raise $150,000, according to a copy of the Aug. 28 letter obtained by the Ottawa Citizen.
Much of the renewed debate around Nazi collaborators in Canada was prompted by a September 2023 event in which MPs of all parties gave two standing ovations to Yaroslav Hunka, a resident of North Bay, Ont. Hunka was described by then House of Commons Speaker Anthony Rota as a hero and he was thanked for his military service.
But news quickly emerged that Hunka had served in a Ukrainian Waffen SS unit which fought for the Nazis. Large numbers of soldiers from a Ukrainian Waffen SS division came to Canada after the war.
The incident became an international embarrassment for Canada as Holocaust historians, Jewish groups and the Polish government pointed out that Hunka’s unit had been involved in war crimes, including massacres of women and children. The division was also used by the Nazis to crush a national uprising in Slovakia, again prompting allegations of war crimes.
There is no evidence Hunka, now 99, was directly involved in those incidents.
But the sight of MPs cheering on a Waffen SS veteran caused intense anger among Canadians, according to documents obtained in June by the Ottawa Citizen using Canada’s access to information law.
In addition, more than 70 academics have signed a petition from the Canadian Institute for the Study of Antisemitism “calling for the release of all documentation on Nazi war criminals in Canada.”
Release secret list of alleged Nazi war criminals in Canada, say Polish and Ukrainian groups
The Canadian Polish Congress and the Association of United Ukrainian Canadians have joined calls for the list to be released.
Premiers push back on Trudeau's refugee resettlement plan
Feds sheepish after plans to send refugee claimants across the country made public
Author of the article:Brian Lilley
Published Sep 12, 2024 • Last updated 2 days ago • 3 minute read
Asylum seekers who came to Canada from African nations like Uganda, Kenya, Nigeria and Tanzania were camped outside of a city-run facility for homeless in Toronto for weeks waiting for assistance in July 2023.
Asylum seekers who came to Canada from African nations like Uganda, Kenya, Nigeria and Tanzania were camped outside of a city-run facility for homeless in Toronto for weeks waiting for assistance in July 2023.
The Trudeau government is looking at taking the hundreds of thousands of refugee claimants currently in Ontario and Quebec and moving them across the country.
It’s an idea that is already being met with resistance from premiers who say the feds should deal with their own programs.
“Alberta’s government is opposed to the federal government’s plan to relocate tens of thousands of asylum claimants to Alberta, especially without any financial assistance to support the province in doing so,” Alberta Premier Danielle Smith said in a statement Thursday.
Smith joined New Brunswick Premier Blaine Higgs who said during a speech on Wednesday that the federal government was looking to move 4,600 refugee claimants to his province. Higgs said during his speech that New Brunswick is a welcoming place but for the federal government to move so many people there without providing financial support is unacceptable.
“This sudden and unilateral proposal by Ottawa is deeply concerning, and I feel obligated to share the challenges it will bring to our province,” Higgs said.
What would those challenges be?
For a start, provincial welfare payments would go through the roof – one senior Ontario government official shared that one in four people on welfare in that province is an asylum seeker. That fact alone they said was costing the provincial government $500 million per year.
In a province like New Brunswick, those figures would be lower but still a strain on the system.
It is the strain on school programs, on the welfare system and social services in general that has led to Quebec’s government and the Bloc Quebecois in Ottawa to push for relocation. According to a document viewed by my Postmedia colleagues at National Post, the Trudeau Liberals propose to send 32,500 asylum seekers to British Columbia, 28,000 to Alberta, 4,952 refugees to Nova Scotia and 4,600 to New Brunswick.
The redistribution idea is being pushed by Quebec where 37,780 refugee applications were filed between Jan. 1 and July 31, that’s equivalent to the population of Sorel-Tracy in a year just from refugee claimants.
Ontario wouldn’t receive any of the resettled people from Quebec because in that same time period Ontario has seen 55,700 people claim asylum, more than the population of North Bay.
Here’s a crazy idea, instead of spreading the problem around, how about fixing it?
The Trudeau government allowed the illegal border crossing at Roxham Road to fester for years, claiming it couldn’t be fixed until it was. Now, instead of people walking across the border, they are flying in from around the world and claiming asylum as soon as they arrive.
The Trudeau government has made it easier to enter Canada with moves such as lowering or eliminating visa requirements or making it easier to enter as a foreign student or temporary foreign worker. That has seen an upshot in asylum claims, including from places like India which has seen a huge uptick in asylum claims by people allowed in on work or study visas.
Immigration Minister Marc Miller hasn’t said the numbers reported by National Post are false, but he has said comments by Premier Higgs were “irresponsible” and that the “allegations by Premier Higgs are largely fictitious.”
Clearly, the Trudeau government is trying to move people around the country rather than fix the problem by dealing with a broken visa system and holes in the work and study programs. Thankfully, while the feds won’t try to fix the problem, some premiers are standing up and saying no.
“The Trudeau Government’s unrestrained open border policies permitting well over a million newcomers each year into Canada is causing significant challenges, and it’s simply not sustainable,” Premier Smith said.
She pointed out that such moves will increase the cost of living and strain social services.
It’s time to end Trudeau’s open border policies but it might take an election to do so.
blilley@postmedia.com
torontosun.com
Feds sheepish after plans to send refugee claimants across the country made public
Author of the article:Brian Lilley
Published Sep 12, 2024 • Last updated 2 days ago • 3 minute read
Asylum seekers who came to Canada from African nations like Uganda, Kenya, Nigeria and Tanzania were camped outside of a city-run facility for homeless in Toronto for weeks waiting for assistance in July 2023.
Asylum seekers who came to Canada from African nations like Uganda, Kenya, Nigeria and Tanzania were camped outside of a city-run facility for homeless in Toronto for weeks waiting for assistance in July 2023.
The Trudeau government is looking at taking the hundreds of thousands of refugee claimants currently in Ontario and Quebec and moving them across the country.
It’s an idea that is already being met with resistance from premiers who say the feds should deal with their own programs.
“Alberta’s government is opposed to the federal government’s plan to relocate tens of thousands of asylum claimants to Alberta, especially without any financial assistance to support the province in doing so,” Alberta Premier Danielle Smith said in a statement Thursday.
Smith joined New Brunswick Premier Blaine Higgs who said during a speech on Wednesday that the federal government was looking to move 4,600 refugee claimants to his province. Higgs said during his speech that New Brunswick is a welcoming place but for the federal government to move so many people there without providing financial support is unacceptable.
“This sudden and unilateral proposal by Ottawa is deeply concerning, and I feel obligated to share the challenges it will bring to our province,” Higgs said.
What would those challenges be?
For a start, provincial welfare payments would go through the roof – one senior Ontario government official shared that one in four people on welfare in that province is an asylum seeker. That fact alone they said was costing the provincial government $500 million per year.
In a province like New Brunswick, those figures would be lower but still a strain on the system.
It is the strain on school programs, on the welfare system and social services in general that has led to Quebec’s government and the Bloc Quebecois in Ottawa to push for relocation. According to a document viewed by my Postmedia colleagues at National Post, the Trudeau Liberals propose to send 32,500 asylum seekers to British Columbia, 28,000 to Alberta, 4,952 refugees to Nova Scotia and 4,600 to New Brunswick.
The redistribution idea is being pushed by Quebec where 37,780 refugee applications were filed between Jan. 1 and July 31, that’s equivalent to the population of Sorel-Tracy in a year just from refugee claimants.
Ontario wouldn’t receive any of the resettled people from Quebec because in that same time period Ontario has seen 55,700 people claim asylum, more than the population of North Bay.
Here’s a crazy idea, instead of spreading the problem around, how about fixing it?
The Trudeau government allowed the illegal border crossing at Roxham Road to fester for years, claiming it couldn’t be fixed until it was. Now, instead of people walking across the border, they are flying in from around the world and claiming asylum as soon as they arrive.
The Trudeau government has made it easier to enter Canada with moves such as lowering or eliminating visa requirements or making it easier to enter as a foreign student or temporary foreign worker. That has seen an upshot in asylum claims, including from places like India which has seen a huge uptick in asylum claims by people allowed in on work or study visas.
Immigration Minister Marc Miller hasn’t said the numbers reported by National Post are false, but he has said comments by Premier Higgs were “irresponsible” and that the “allegations by Premier Higgs are largely fictitious.”
Clearly, the Trudeau government is trying to move people around the country rather than fix the problem by dealing with a broken visa system and holes in the work and study programs. Thankfully, while the feds won’t try to fix the problem, some premiers are standing up and saying no.
“The Trudeau Government’s unrestrained open border policies permitting well over a million newcomers each year into Canada is causing significant challenges, and it’s simply not sustainable,” Premier Smith said.
She pointed out that such moves will increase the cost of living and strain social services.
It’s time to end Trudeau’s open border policies but it might take an election to do so.
blilley@postmedia.com
LILLEY: Premiers push back on Trudeau's refugee resettlement plan
The Trudeau government is looking at moving hundreds of thousands of refugee claimants across the country from Ontario and Quebec.
Canada currently has 236,000 asylum seekers, a factor of a drastic incline. In just 2016, only 24,000 refugee claims were made; that number sextupled to 145,000 in 2023. The approval rate is an incredibly high 78 per cent, but this is in part a factor of wide admissions criteria. A suspicious majority of Nigerian claimants base their claims on sexual orientation, which is difficult to disprove. False and inadequately screened claims from unstable countries, such as Somalia and Syria, are also a concern.
Part of the incline might be traced to the prime minister jubilantly bellowing to the world that “Canadians will welcome you” in 2017 in response to President Donald Trump’s temporary pause on immigration from high-risk countries, primarily in Africa and the Middle East. This was often mischaracterized in the news as a “Muslim ban,” and Trudeau received international praise for playing the foil.
More significantly, Trudeau made a number of procedural changes to increase asylum claimant flow. In 2016, the government expanded the list of visa-exempt countries and required travellers from them to obtain an Electronic Travel Authorization (eTA); only 3,500 eTA holders made refugee claims in 2017, but in 2023, that number rose to just over 27,000 — an increase of 672 per cent. Evidently, Canada granted visa-free travel to far too many countries that should never have been given the privilege.
The feds also dramatically loosened visitor visa eligibility in February 2023, axing the requirement for travellers to prove that they had a plan to leave and enough money to cover their stay. This was an apparent bid to reduce the volume of visa applications inundating the federal immigration department — a foolish one, because the government was also warned in a memo that this move would lead to more asylum claims.
In 2022, Trudeau defended his decision to leave Roxham Road open, ignoring the pleas of Quebecers. It took until March 2023 for him to officially close the crossing.
Many large source countries have no business sending us refugees. Mexico, which is the top exporter of asylum claimants to Canada, is not at war and, though unsafe in many places, is safe in many others. The same can be said for India, which ranks just below Mexico. Nigeria, in third, does suffer regional unrest, but not the kind of all-out war seen in the Middle East and Ukraine.
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Part of the incline might be traced to the prime minister jubilantly bellowing to the world that “Canadians will welcome you” in 2017 in response to President Donald Trump’s temporary pause on immigration from high-risk countries, primarily in Africa and the Middle East. This was often mischaracterized in the news as a “Muslim ban,” and Trudeau received international praise for playing the foil.
More significantly, Trudeau made a number of procedural changes to increase asylum claimant flow. In 2016, the government expanded the list of visa-exempt countries and required travellers from them to obtain an Electronic Travel Authorization (eTA); only 3,500 eTA holders made refugee claims in 2017, but in 2023, that number rose to just over 27,000 — an increase of 672 per cent. Evidently, Canada granted visa-free travel to far too many countries that should never have been given the privilege.
The feds also dramatically loosened visitor visa eligibility in February 2023, axing the requirement for travellers to prove that they had a plan to leave and enough money to cover their stay. This was an apparent bid to reduce the volume of visa applications inundating the federal immigration department — a foolish one, because the government was also warned in a memo that this move would lead to more asylum claims.
In 2022, Trudeau defended his decision to leave Roxham Road open, ignoring the pleas of Quebecers. It took until March 2023 for him to officially close the crossing.
Many large source countries have no business sending us refugees. Mexico, which is the top exporter of asylum claimants to Canada, is not at war and, though unsafe in many places, is safe in many others. The same can be said for India, which ranks just below Mexico. Nigeria, in third, does suffer regional unrest, but not the kind of all-out war seen in the Middle East and Ukraine.
Jamie Sarkonak: Don't burden the rest of Canada with asylum seekers. Change the rules — National Post
Liberal loopholes have brought too many want-to-be refugees to the country, but Alberta, B.C., New Brunswick and Nova Scotia are at capacity