Speaking Notes - The Honourable Joe Volpe, Minister of Citizenship and Immigration, at a meeting of the Canadian Bar Association

Banff, Alberta, April 15, 2005

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Thank you.

It’s a pleasure for me to be with you here today. All of you have played an invaluable role in helping to shape the course of Canada’s immigration and refugee program. I’m therefore delighted to have had this invitation to attend this event.

I’ve spent the last, very hectic few months meeting with some of you, as well as with other partners and stakeholders in regions across Canada. Today’s meeting represents another step forward in these important consultations.

It gives me an opportunity to expand on some of my earlier observations about our immigration and refugee program and on where I see things going. It also provides an opportunity to listen to your views, share your ideas, and hear many of your concerns. I find it particularly appropriate that we should embark on this exercise today.

This week, of course marks the 20th anniversary of the equality provision of Canada’s Charter of Rights and Freedoms. It’s hard to think of many better occasions to talk about our future than at the same time as we reflect on and revel in many of the values that help define us as a nation and as a fully inclusive society.

Let me therefore extend a very warm welcome to you all.

As it has been for many years, Canada’s immigration and refugee program today is very much in motion and a work in progress.

The world is constantly changing. So we need to adopt new approaches, be open to new ideas, and actively seek new ways of doing business all the time.

Change is a necessity we need to embrace so that we can continue building an immigration and refugee program that delivers the results all Canadians need and expect.

I recently outlined my six priorities to address real and pressing issues within the immigration program. And we’re making progress in each. But there’s still much work to do.

Studies tell us that ability to attract foreign-trained skilled workers will be especially important to Canada’s economic future given the country’s ageing population and low birth rates. The manufacturing sector itself, for example, may be looking at replacing 400,000 workers over the next 15 years. And it will be as equally important in every region of Canada.

The Government of Canada is firmly committed to making sure that businesses have the talent they need to effectively compete in today’s global market place, whether that is through permanent migration of skilled workers or through the temporary movement to respond to short-term needs.

One of the ways we’re doing that is by working with our partners to better connect the skills and experience that foreign trained professionals bring to Canada with the skills that employers need.

But we can’t hope to continue attracting the newcomers we’ll need if it takes months or even years for them to get here.

In many ways, our present visa application system for economic immigrants reminds me of an airline with a single 250,000-seat plane leaving for Canada once a year.

Anyone can apply to come to Canada at any time regardless of how large the inventory or waiting list is and regardless of local needs. We fill every seat on the plane with passengers from around the world.

The system has some good points. But we keep on selling tickets regardless of whether there are any seats available or how long the queue is. We can’t tell anyone in the line when they will get to fly or return their money if they choose a different destination.

The Department can and does finalize many applications in six to eight months. We’ve demonstrated that for some family class applicants. We’ve also seen it in some Provincial Nominee Programs.

But skilled worker applications can take four or five years to process. That’s deeply troubling.

Can they be processed faster? Can we increase target levels if not? Would it be more efficient for the Government of Canada to only accept an application once it’s ready to be processed? Do we need to manage intake in the same way that we manage output in some cases?

These are the questions we need to ask over the coming months. I’m confident that many of your ideas can help us find the fairest and most efficient answers and I look forward to hearing your views. We don’t have all the answers yet. But we’re working very hard to get them.

Ultimately, I see us having a system where the application process is much faster than today; one that provides people with decisions in a timely and transparent way.

I think we need a system that brings people to Canada in an orderly and predictable way and allows them to get on with their lives.

Many newcomers to Canada, of course, arrive seeking protection from persecution or internal conflict in their homeland. Today this country’s refugee system is internationally recognized as one of the best in the world in terms of fairness and compassion.

The United Nations High Commission for Refugees has called it a model for other countries to follow. But it also has some shortcomings. I believe that it takes too long for decisions to be made. I also believe it takes much too long to achieve finality for those decisions.

What we need is a fast, fair and efficient system that allows those in genuine need of protection to land quickly so that they can focus on building their new lives in Canada. We need a way to quickly remove those who do not need Canada’s protection so that our resources can be better targeted.

We also need to further strengthen the government's ability to ensure that the refugee system is not vulnerable to abuse by those who threaten public safety or national security. In short, we need a system that allows us to help more refugees in need in a quicker and better manner that also has the confidence of Canadians.

But improving the way we bring people to Canada — whether as refugees, members of the family class or economic immigrants — is only part of the equation. We also need to make sure the traditional social contract is upheld once they get here.

Most of all, we need to ensure that those who choose Canada as a destination tell their family and friends that it was worth the trip.

Recent studies show newcomers are not doing as well as earlier waves of immigrants. This must change. An immigration program for the 21^st Century will need to provide new arrivals with a realistic view of life in Canada, including labour market access issues before they depart as well as the appropriate settlement and integration services upon arrival.

But this is only the beginning. What happens after immigrants get here? How can they get started in their chosen field? Even with the right information, many might still require better language skills or more education to meet certain credential requirements.

Fair enough.

Canada shouldn’t abandon its professional standards. Neither, however, should we continue to discount valuable work experience or skills acquired overseas.

We need to find a way to address potential gaps in knowledge or capabilities while ensuring newcomers who otherwise possess the skills that Canadian businesses will need to succeed on the world stage are not trapped in low-wage jobs that waste their skills and limit Canada’s growth.

One of my priorities as Minister is to break down many of the social and economic barriers newcomers face when they arrive.

All of us need to work jointly to address the barriers preventing the full participation of foreign-trained skilled workers on both a social and economic level. We’ve made some good progress to date in the regulated professions. But we still have much work to do.

The goal should be to ensure all Canadians can fully participate in our national growth by finding work commensurate with their skills and experience. This will help us build a more globally competitive and sustainable economy. It will also strengthen us as a society and enrich us as nation.

Most newcomers, of course, choose to become citizens and make this country their permanent home. Canada’s increasing diversity, however, is helping to change our notion of citizenship. So it’s increasingly important to reassert the rights and responsibilities that go along with being a Canadian.

There’s also a need to recognize that the trust that forms the basis of social cohesion in Canada is not based on tangible symbols but on a commitment to Canada as a country of shared values.

Today we have to ask ourselves if there is need to talk about a new model of citizenship — a “shared citizenship” model that brings out what is core to Canada: a sharing across differences.

Citizenship in my mind is more than just a piece of paper. It helps define who we are and articulates many of the fundamental values all of us cherish. Citizenship legislation therefore needs to accurately reflect these values and principles. And we need to talk about how to deepen and broaden the notions of citizenship after individual ceremonies.

The Standing Committee on Citizenship and Immigration is currently holding cross-country hearings on citizenship legislation and I look forward to hearing their recommendations soon.

So far I’ve spoken with you about some of the areas of Canada’s immigration and refugee program that I believe we need to address. I’d like to now briefly highlight some of the ways we’ve improved.

The 2005 Budget, of course, provides the Department with $398 million in settlement and client service funding that will help it improve access to information and service delivery for our clients and also provide many more newcomers with further access to the services such as language training that make such a difference to how quickly and well they adapt to their new lives in Canada.

Funds have also been allocated to help improve many aspects of service delivery — including making it easier for newcomers to get information about their applications or about their new life in Canada through the development of an online information portal.

So this is good news for everyone.

As equally encouraging are the changes to Canada’s spousal policy which allow most married individuals or common law partners to remain in Canada while their immigration application is being considered.

Processing times for many refugees have also been substantially reduced over the past year and the Immigration and Refugee Board (IRB) backlog is also significantly reduced. As well, more than half of all family reunification applications for spouses and children today are finalized within six months.

This government is also working hard to make sure newcomers with the skills we need can fully participate and contribute to our growth.

So reforms are already underway. But we need to go much, much further. To do so will require leadership. It will require cooperation across all levels of government as well as with multiple stakeholders and partners. And it will require vision.

Let me therefore conclude these remarks with the simple observation that the Government of Canada cannot and should not either define or impose a single vision for the immigration and refugee program in isolation.

We need input and ideas from our partners at all levels. The final destination is something all of us have to define as full and equal partners. So I think we need to openly share our ideas and engage in an honest and forthright dialogue.

What do I see as the future? In short, I see an immigration and refugee program that unites us and strengthens the bonds that make us great. Immigration has changed the face of Canada and together all of us need to articulate how immigration can contribute to building our shared future.

I see an immigration and refugee program that upholds our traditional social contract with newcomers and allows all to share in the fruits of our prosperity.

I see one in which responsibilities are as much a part of our national dialogue as rights and that has the confidence of all Canadians.

I see one that continues our tradition of nation building and helps to build a nation where, in Sir Wilfred Laurier’s words, other countries may come to seek a lesson in justice and humanity.

I see it helping to build a nation that draws on all its strengths and talents to achieve its potential on the world stage.

The status quo is therefore not an option.

Today we need to move forward in order to ensure the immigration and refugee program is properly aligned with our present social and economic realities.

We need to transform it into a more active, responsive and agile mechanism for the 21^st century. We need to ensure immigration meets Canada’s current and anticipated human capital needs. We need to ensure everyone benefits from immigration.

And we need to ensure that we strengthen Canada’s humanitarian tradition around the world and continue to help genuine refugees in the fastest, fairest and most efficient way possible.

Such efforts will produce a unique Canadian asset that not only helps to define our national soul but also helps Canada achieve its true potential on the world stage and makes the coming decades ours for the taking.

Thank you.