Immigration will continue to be prioritized by the Canadian government for the foreseeable future as outlined in Trudeau’s supplementary mandate letter to Minister Mendicino. Expansion of pilot programs, providing better support to newcomers and expediting family reunification are just a few of the priorities.
Prime Minister Trudeau’s vision and plans for the country’s immigration plan was revealed in his Supplementary Mandate Letter to the Honourable Marco Mendicino, Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Canadian Citizenship on January 15 2021.
This letter is of extreme significance for IRCC and outlines the department’s goals and objectives while under Liberal leadership. Trudeau states the old mandates from his letter to the Minister from December 23 2019 are still in place and these are new additions to the previous objectives.
Since immigration plays such an important role in Canada’s economic and social growth, it comes as no surprise that it will continue to be prioritized, even as the country continues to wrestle with the ongoing pandemic.
Today, we’re releasing supplementary mandate letters for our Cabinet ministers. These letters outline our government’s plan to address the challenges of today and prepare for the opportunities of the future. For all the details, click here: https://t.co/7LFIWz76l3
— Justin Trudeau (@JustinTrudeau) January 15, 2021
Some of the key and most significant takeaways from the letter are as follows:
- Expansion of pilot programs to welcome skilled refugees through Canada’s economic immigration streams;
- Expediting the process of family reunification;
- Working on sectoral and pilot programs;
- Continuation of measures that will create pathways to permanent residency for individuals who faced the pandemic by working in long-term care homes, medical facilities or provided other essential services;
- Continue looking into pathways which will help temporary foreign workers gain permanent residency;
- Collaborate with other cabinet Ministers to manage Canada’s ports of entries in a responsible and compassionate manner while protecting the health and safety of Canadians;
- Work with the Honourable Carla Qualtrough; Minister of Employment, Workforce Development and Disability Inclusion to fill labour gaps in the farming and food processing industries and protect workers who may be vulnerable to COVID-19;
- Continue collaborating with provinces and territories to facilitate newcomers’ integration and settlement in Canada successfully, including providing support for French-language training.
Trudeau recognizes that the pandemic is causing unforeseen challenges and complications but it is also clear that immigrants will play a front and center role in Canada’s economic recovery and growth in a post-COVID world.
The key priorities in the supplementary mandate letter are in keeping with this goal as well as the targets outlined in the 2021-2023 Immigration Levels Plan, such as improving processing time for new applications and a plan to welcome at least 401,000 newcomers into the country this year.