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Beck’s request for immigration policy review by government makes sense

Ron Walter looks at immigration policy in Saskatchewan.
MJT_RonWalter_TradingThoughts
Trading Thoughts by Ron Walter

Provincial NDP leader Carla Beck may have hit on a winning issue with Saskatchewan voters when she asked for a review of immigration policy in Saskatchewan.

Her basic question: Why have so many of the immigrants coming to this province left?

Obvious reasons for newcomers leaving exist. The climate is too harsh, the pull of similar ethnic communities is too great, and the attraction of large cities is great.

There may be other reasons why immigrants leave, from finding work to treatment by citizens, to the culture.

A review of immigration as Beck wants could clear up another mystery and determine the success or failure of current policy.

When the Canadian government and the provinces altered the point system for immigrants by essentially allowing immigrants with money to buy the right to work towards Canadian citizenship, the policy was promoted as bringing more investment to Canada.

A second benefit was creation of buyers for a generation of small businesses whose owners wanted to retire.

From the start, this policy has frustrated a few communities. In these communities, immigrants have purchased a business to qualify for the immigration program. 

What happened in a few cases was sudden closure of the business, devastating the district.

Was the transition to a new culture too hard? Should there have been transition support from the province to improve chances of success? Or were there other reasons?

As the “buy your citizenship’’ application policy continued, more stories surfaced about a few immigrants who stay long enough to obtain papers, then sell the business to another immigrant and move back to their homeland.

What bothers some observers is an apparent trend to buying Canadian citizenship and then using that citizenship as a getaway card or second home from their homeland if the political situation in their homeland deteriorates.

Scholars of administration have suggested all laws have a sunset clause with an automatic review of the law and update every so many years.

Immigration policy for Canada would benefit from such a sunset clause and review.

First question on the list: Should something as special as a Canadian citizenship essentially be sold? Canadian citizenship is priceless.     

Becoming a citizen in this country should involve commitment to build the country and live in Canada. 

Immigrants are welcome and needed to continue building the country.

My ancestors came to this country from Eastern Europe to avoid loss of freedom of religion, loss of freedom of local autonomy, loss of freedom of speech. They never looked back, never looked at Canada as a second home.

For them, it was a place to build a new future, as it should be.
 
Ron Walter can be reached at ronjoy@sasktel.net   

The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the position of this publication.  

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