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NOTES FOR AN ADDRESS BY
THE HONOURABLE JOE VOLPE
MINISTER OF CITIZENSHIP
AND IMMIGRATION

Before a meeting of the
Standing Committee on Citizenship
and Immigration on
Supplementary Estimates

Ottawa, Ontario
March 8, 2005

Check against delivery

* * * * *

Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

It’s indeed a pleasure to be here this morning so soon after my first appearance before this committee. I appreciated the welcome you gave me last month.

So let me offer my regards to all of you here today, and reassert my commitment to working with this committee in the months ahead to continue building an immigration and refugee program that meets the needs of all Canadians.

I think the 2005-06 Budget goes a long way towards setting us on the right course in this regard. The new settlement and service delivery funding will allow the Department to deliver on key priorities for the coming year. This funding, of course, will be submitted for approval at Supplementary Estimates (A) for the upcoming fiscal year.

Let me also offer you all my best wishes as we honour International Women’s Day. The role of women in building this country is well-known, so let me offer the women on this committee, and my deputy minister beside me, a round of applause for their ongoing contributions to this country.

This morning I have a few remarks to make on the supplementary estimates (B) for fiscal 2004-2005. I’d also like to briefly speak with you about some preliminary numbers for immigration in 2004. I’ll then be happy to answer your questions.

Supplementary Estimates (B) for fiscal 2004-2005 provide the Department with additional resources of $28.2 million. This includes $22 million in additional funding for the Interim Federal Health Program, $4.1 million in funding related to the Department’s Tsunami relief efforts, and $1.2 million for additional statutory funding under the terms of the Canada-Quebec Accord on Immigration. It also includes $900,000 for the write-off of outstanding immigration loans as well as additional funding related to the Interdepartmental Partnership with the Official Language Communities. Slightly more than $16 million of the total has been offset by the re-profiling of funds to fiscal 2005-2006, resulting in total net requirements of $12 million.

Changes related to the transfer of responsibilities to the Canada Border Services Agency are also reflected in the supplementary estimates before you. Supplementary Estimates (B) for fiscal 2004-05 show a transfer of $148.9 million to the Agency, which represents the lion’s share of the total resource transfer. Corporate resources and the full year impact of the transfer of Port of Entry resources will be reflected in the Department’s 2005-2006 Main Estimates.

Let me now turn my attention to the Department’s announcement on immigration levels yesterday.

I’m immensely proud that the preliminary numbers indicate that 2004 will represent the fifth year in a row that the Government of Canada has met or exceeded this country’s immigration targets — which are set by the Government of Canada each year in close cooperation with the Provinces, Territories, as well as other partners and stakeholders.

Today’s levels are based on the Government of Canada’s firm conviction that immigration will be vital to maintaining Canada’s growing diversity and innovation in the years ahead. They are also based on our duty to ensure the integrity of the immigration program through a proper and appropriate balance of intake to available resources.

Preliminary numbers for 2004 show total landings of almost 236,000 — well within the target immigration levels tabled in Parliament of 220,000 to 245,000. Economic classes of immigrants represent 57 percent of all new arrivals for the year and newcomers under the family class and refugees make up the remaining 43 percent. The preliminary numbers also show total refugee landings of 32,675 for 2004. This is at the very high end of our target range for the year, and more than 20 percent higher than the previous year.

Economic migrants, of course, bring skills, knowledge and innovation to our country. They are an essential part of our immigration program, and indeed, to the economic life of Canada.

Families and family reunification, are also a priority and I’d like to assure you that the Department is working very hard to improve processing times for these applicants — especially those that fall under the spousal and dependant children categories.

The Government of Canada believes that families represent both an anchor and a source of strength for the future to many newcomers the government brings to Canada. They also represent the strongest possible foundation for the health and prosperity of any community or nation.

We therefore need to ensure that the family class remains a vibrant and integral component of Canada’s immigration program. This is what we’ve done in the past, and it’s what we’re doing now through initiatives such as the new in-Canada spousal application policy and our support to the Vietnamese Boat People and their families here in Canada.

Let me conclude these remarks by noting again how pleased I am to have been given this opportunity to work with so many of you who have such a vital interest in helping improve Canada’s immigration program. All of you will play a vital role in helping us succeed in this regard. And succeed is what we can — and indeed what we must do — if we’re willing to work together.

Thank you.