News Release – Member of Parliament Royal Galipeau and former Minister Flora MacDonald welcome new Canadians at special ceremony

Ottawa, April 12, 2010 — Royal Galipeau, Member of Parliament for Ottawa–Orléans, on behalf of the Honourable Jason Kenney, Minister of Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism, and former Minister of Employment and Immigration Flora MacDonald today welcomed new Canadians at a special citizenship ceremony to mark the national 4‑H citizenship seminar at the Canada Science and Technology Museum.

A group of 51 new Canadians from 29 countries took the oath of citizenship and 72 delegates from the Canadian 4‑H Council received their reaffirmation certificates.

“Each year, approximately 170,000 people from around the world become new Canadian citizens,” said MP Galipeau. “Every time Canada welcomes a new citizen, another page of our country’s story is written.”

The Canadian 4‑H Council, partly funded by Agriculture and Agri–Food Canada, hosted the ceremony as part of its annual “Adventures in Citizenship” seminar held in Ottawa. The seminar provides delegates with an opportunity to increase their awareness and understanding of the rights and responsibilities of Canadian citizens.

The Honourable Flora MacDonald, who served for 16 years (1972–1988) as Member of Parliament for Kingston and the Islands and held three Cabinet positions, presided over the ceremony. She was Canada’s first female foreign minister.

For those interested in learning more about Canadian citizenship, Citizenship and Immigration Canada’s new comprehensive citizenship study guide, entitled Discover Canada: The Rights and Responsibilities of Citizenship, can be downloaded or ordered for free from the CIC website.

For further information (media only), please contact:

Alykhan Velshi
Minister’s Office
Citizenship and Immigration Canada

Media Relations
Communications Branch
Citizenship and Immigration Canada
613-952-1650
CIC-Media-Relations@cic.gc.ca