Opposition parties target Tories on immigration tactics

This is from the CBC. Tacking on things to bills is common in the U.S. As an admirer of the U.S. Harper has imported the practice into the Canadian parliament. It is a heinous practice since it usually lumps together matters that have nothing to do with one another and it is impossible to defeat one issue but pass the other. Not that this will make much difference since the Liberals will probably pass anything until their polls improve. No doubt the Liberals disapprove of the content of the immigration law changes and will wax eloquent about how horrible they are. This will give the new members of the Liberal team a chance to exercise their vocal chords before they sit on their hands.



Opposition parties target Tories on immigration tactics

Opposition members accused the government on Monday of using a parliamentary trick to push through sweeping changes to Canada's immigration policies before the House of Commons' annual two-week Easter break.

The proposed changes to the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act are embedded in the 136-page budget-implementation bill the Tories tabled in the House earlier this month.

Liberal Leader Stéphane Dion said the government must allow for an open and complete debate on the proposed measures, which propose greater selection powers to limit the number of new immigration applicants.

"Instead of presenting independent legislation, why are they trying to sneak this change through the back door?" Dion said.

Dion also decried the proposed changes, saying they would give the immigration minister exorbitant powers to choose some immigrants while shutting the door completely on other candidates.

The Liberals ensured the vote on Bill C-50, a confidence motion, did not bring down Prime Minister Stephen Harper's government, but the bill must still be debated and sent to committee before returning to the House for a final vote. Both the Bloc Québécois and NDP voted against the bill.
The prime minister responded by saying the measures were necessary to deal with a backlog of more than 800,000 immigration applicants left over by the previous Liberal government.

He said the backlogs made it harder to ensure the country's workforce needs were being met and called the five and six-year delays some applicants face "unfair."

'We need immigrants'
"That's why we made it a confidence motion … and we appreciate the support of the Liberals," Harper added.

But New Democrat MP Thomas Mulcair said the government had "stolen a page from the American playbook" and defied parliamentary tradition by including the measures in the budget bill that "relied on the weakness" of the Liberals.

He also accused the Tories of trying to create a system where some nationalities will be excluded from Canada.

Immigration Minister Diane Finley defended the changes, saying they would create a "streamlined" system of handling applicants.

"We need immigrants," Finley said. "We need their talent."

The changes would give the immigration minister the authority to instruct immigration officers to set limits on what types of immigrants — "by category or otherwise" — can have their applications processed each year.