Immigration Reform

It's about time:

"The government of Canada is looking at ways to streamline its immigration system in order to eliminate a backlog of more than a million applicants.

Citizenship and Immigration Minister Jason Kenney said on Wednesday the government was considering a wide range of options to create a more nimble immigration system better able to meet employers' needs for skilled labor.

"The doors are always going to be open. We're planning on continuing to receive over a quarter of a million immigrants per year," he said. "The question is how do we select those who are most likely to succeed and do so on a fast basis.""

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"One idea is to have provinces go through the backlog of applicants and pick out people with the qualifications companies need, such as engineers in the oil business.

"It's about ... matching the immigrants with the jobs rather than just pushing them into the general labor market to sink or swim," Kenney said.

Canada remains relatively open to immigrants, but many newcomers complain it is difficult to get their education and professional qualifications recognized, forcing them to retrain or find work in a different, often unskilled, field.

Kenney said he was considering requiring prospective immigrants who already have credentials to get a pre-assessment from professional associations in Canada of their chances of having their credentials recognized."

Long, long overdue, that. It happened to my ex way back in 1967. He had to undergo a long and involved process to have his engineering credentials evaluated, and eventually had to go back to school at the U of S in order to meet the requirements for recognition of his credentials as a professional engineer. This proposal beats that, hands down, and it sure beats having highly qualified individuals driving taxi-cabs, when jobs for which they may be qualified, go unfulfilled.

More here:

"Canada will consider legislating away its massive backlog of immigration applications and allowing provinces to cherry-pick from one big pool of would-be newcomers in a bid to trans-form Canada's immigration system into one that's driven by the economy, Immigration Minister Jason Kenney said Wednesday.

In a speech to business leaders at an Economic Club of Canada luncheon, Kenney promised "transformational change" to immigration that emphasizes the need for skilled newcomers who can fill gaps in the country's labour market."

That's the way it used to be, decades ago.