{"id":230547,"date":"2019-09-11T20:25:25","date_gmt":"2019-09-12T00:25:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/?p=230547"},"modified":"2019-09-11T20:25:47","modified_gmt":"2019-09-12T00:25:47","slug":"canadians-will-vote-for-a-new-government-october-21","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/2019\/09\/11\/canadians-will-vote-for-a-new-government-october-21\/","title":{"rendered":"Canadians will vote for a new government October 21"},"content":{"rendered":"<figure id=\"attachment_8083\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-8083\" style=\"width: 1000px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><a href=\"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/04\/canada-flag.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-8083\" src=\"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/04\/canada-flag.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1000\" height=\"667\" srcset=\"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/04\/canada-flag.jpg 1000w, https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/04\/canada-flag-300x200.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-8083\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">While Canada\u2019s main federal political parties all stand in favour of immigration, the past four years have seen them diverge on a number of related issues, such as asylum seekers and Canada\u2019s immigration levels. (ShutterStock Photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Canadians will head to the polls next month to vote for a new federal government, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced today.\u00a0<span id=\"more-12764\"><\/span><\/p>\n<p>The election call kicks off a campaign period that will culminate with Canada\u2019s 43rd general election on October 21.<\/p>\n<p>Trudeau framed the coming vote as a choice between \u201cmoving forward\u201d or going back to the \u201cfailed policies\u201d of the Conservative Party of Canada, which the Trudeau-led Liberal Party of Canada ousted from power in 2015.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat\u2019s the choice,\u201d Trudeau said. \u201cIt\u2019s that clear and it\u2019s that important.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/newsinteractives.cbc.ca\/elections\/poll-tracker\/canada\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Polls<\/a>\u00a0have the two parties effectively tied as they hit the campaign trail.<\/p>\n<p>It is widely believed that immigration could emerge as an issue in this election. While Canada\u2019s main federal political parties all stand in favour of immigration, the past four years have seen them diverge on a number of related issues, such as asylum seekers and Canada\u2019s immigration levels.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cicnews.com\/2019\/05\/canadas-2019-federal-election-how-could-it-affect-immigration-and-express-entry-0512307.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><strong>Canada\u2019s 2019 federal election: How could it affect immigration and Express Entry?<\/strong><\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Asylum seekers<\/h3>\n<p>Since the inauguration of U.S. President Donald Trump in 2017, nearly 50,000 people \u2014 mostly non-Americans \u2014 have crossed into Canada from the United States via unofficial ports of entry to claim asylum.<\/p>\n<p>Among other impacts, the sharp rise in asylum claims overwhelmed Canada\u2019s Immigration and Refugee Board and forced it to abandon its 60-day requirement for protection hearings, which now face an\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/irb-cisr.gc.ca\/en\/information-sheets\/Pages\/refugee-protection.aspx\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">estimated wait time<\/a>\u00a0of nearly two years.<\/p>\n<p>The Conservatives have frequently portrayed the situation as \u201ca crisis\u201d that has undermined public confidence in Canada\u2019s borders and damaged public support for immigration more broadly.<\/p>\n<p>The Liberals have fought back against the \u201ccrisis\u201d label and accused the Conservatives of spreading misinformation about the situation and using it to stoke public fears for political gain.<\/p>\n<p>Conservative leader Andrew Scheer has publicly questioned the legitimacy of many asylum seekers,\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbc.ca\/news\/politics\/scheer-immigration-policy-refugees-economy-1.5153043\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">telling one audience<\/a>\u00a0that \u201csome are able to jump queues, exploit loopholes and skip the line.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The \u201cloopholes\u201d that Scheer alluded to are found in Canada\u2019s Safe Third Country Agreement (STCA) with the United States, which holds that both countries are safe for refugees and strictly limits who can claim asylum at ports of entry along the land border between the two countries. The agreement, however, only covers claims made at official border crossings, leading to the spike in so-called \u201cirregular\u201d crossings between recognized ports of entry.<\/p>\n<p>The Liberals\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.theglobeandmail.com\/politics\/article-canada-in-talks-with-us-to-close-loophole-in-border-pact-on-asylum\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">have explored closing this loophole<\/a>, which Scheer is pledging to do if elected.<\/p>\n<p>Canada\u2019s left-leaning New Democratic Party (NDP), which is running a distant third in opinion polls, has called for the STCA to be suspended, saying the United States under Donald Trump is not a safe country for refugees.<\/p>\n<p>Suspending the STCA, NDP immigration critic Jenny Kwan\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.ndp.ca\/news\/ndp-statement-safe-third-country-agreement\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">said earlier this year<\/a>, \u201cwill allow asylum claimants to make safe, orderly entries into Canada at authorized ports of entry to make an asylum claim.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Elizabeth May, leader of Canada\u2019s Green Party, has opposed Liberal efforts to close the loophole and prevent irregular crossings, saying they \u201cdo not reflect Canadian values of hospitality and protection.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cPeople who risk their lives to flee across a border in the middle of winter are desperate and out of options,\u201d May said in\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.greenparty.ca\/en\/media-release\/2019-03-20\/turning-people-away-border-same-building-wall-says-elizabeth-may\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">a statement<\/a>\u00a0earlier this year.<\/p>\n<p>Public opinion polls released over the course of this year have shown\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbc.ca\/news\/politics\/canadians-favour-limiting-immigration-1.5177814\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">a growing partisan divide<\/a>\u00a0on refugees and immigration more generally, with Conservative voters expressing greater concerns than supporters of the Liberals and Canada\u2019s other mainstream federal parties.<\/p>\n<h3><b>Immigration levels<\/b><\/h3>\n<p>The Liberals and Conservatives have also been at odds when it comes to\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.canadavisa.com\/canada-multi-year-immigration-plan-2018-2021.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Canada\u2019s immigration levels<\/a>, which the Liberals have raised significantly since coming to power in 2015.<\/p>\n<p>In 2017, the Liberal government introduced a new approach to immigration levels planning that moved away from single-year plans to\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.cicnews.com\/2017\/11\/canada-welcome-nearly-one-million-new-immigrants-through-2020-119798.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">a three-year approach<\/a>. The first so-called multi-year plan called for a gradual increase in the number of immigrants admitted to Canada in each of the three subsequent years, from 310,000 in 2018 to 340,000 in 2020.<\/p>\n<p>This was followed last year with an\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.cicnews.com\/2018\/11\/canada-extends-immigration-targets-into-2021-with-prominent-roles-for-express-entry-pnps-1111368.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">updated plan through 2021<\/a>\u00a0that could see the number of newcomers admitted to Canada reach 350,000, or nearly one per cent of the Canadian population.<\/p>\n<p>The Conference Board of Canada\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.cicnews.com\/2018\/05\/new-report-calls-for-raising-canada-immigration-rate-0510650.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">says an immigration rate of one per cent<\/a>\u00a0is the baseline for mitigating the impacts of Canada\u2019s declining birth rate and rising workforce retirements on the country\u2019s social and economic development in the years to come.<\/p>\n<p>The Conservatives, however, have compared the Liberal approach to immigration levels to \u201can auction\u201d with little regard for whether those admitted find work or meet existing employer needs.<\/p>\n<p>If elected, Scheer\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservative.ca\/cpc\/andrew-scheers-immigration-plan\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">says<\/a>\u00a0a Conservative government will \u201cset immigration levels consistent with what is in Canada\u2019s best interests,\u201d but he has not provided specific targets.<\/p>\n<p>The NDP, meanwhile, has called for more ambitious immigration targets that reflect a more \u201cbalanced and diverse range\u201d of newcomers, including a greater number of privately sponsored and government-assisted refugees.<\/p>\n<h3><b>Pleas for civility and respect<\/b><\/h3>\n<p>Representatives of Canada\u2019s business community and more than 140 civil society organizations have separately requested that Canada\u2019s federal political leaders avoid making immigration an issue in the coming weeks, or tone it down significantly if they do.<\/p>\n<p>Business Council of Canada President and CEO Goldy Hyder\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/business.financialpost.com\/news\/economy\/canadian-businesses-message-ahead-of-the-election-we-need-immigrant-workers\">told Reuters<\/a>\u00a0this summer that he hopes immigration won\u2019t be used as a \u201cpolitical weapon here like it has been in the United States.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe facts clearly demonstrate that Canada is going to need immigrants to help grow the economy,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/ccrweb.ca\/en\/open-letter-discourse-refugees-migrants-elections\">An open letter<\/a>\u00a0signed by more than 140 civil society organizations makes a similar appeal.<\/p>\n<p>Posted by the Canadian Council of Refugees and endorsed by organizations including Amnesty International Canada, the Canadian Council of Churches and the Canadian Council of Imams, the letter calls on Canada\u2019s political leaders to discuss refugees and migration in ways that will not contribute to xenophobia and racism or promote misinformation, among other concerns.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe know Canadians value compassion, equality and safety for all,\u201d the letter reads.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIn the upcoming federal election campaign, we call on you to demonstrate your leadership by respecting these principles and speaking out when they are undermined by others.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><em>\u00a9 2019 CIC News All Rights Reserved<\/em><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Canadians will head to the polls next month to vote for a new federal government, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced &hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":33,"featured_media":8083,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[18,6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-230547","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-news-ca","category-immigration","mauthors-stephen-smith","mauthors-cic-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/230547","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/33"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=230547"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/230547\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":230549,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/230547\/revisions\/230549"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/8083"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=230547"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=230547"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=230547"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}