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http://www.edmontonsun.com/News/Alberta/2007/05/13/4177280.html
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' n- W9 R$ D$ m' S+ b' g6 tCALGARY — An agreement between Alberta and the federal government will allow 25,000 foreign workers per year to come to the province to aid in its worker shortage. & i. T8 W3 |9 \8 w: ]
& D, V' S% l Y/ ?0 P7 l, T5 L1 V: JAlberta Premier Ed Stelmach says the agreement will cut red tape and give the province increased influence and control of immigration. 6 ]% R8 g$ K8 g
- h+ Z5 u @3 ?% ^8 DThe rise to 25,000 immigrant workers per year will happen over the next 10 years under the provincial nominee program. . f; Z4 d( s( j- H; K3 Y1 {
' E( @4 l1 B$ U- R) \Right now, 2,500 workers per year come under the program.
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; S- u* j8 L$ K; T+ c3 [0 w( m6 B2 X5 CFederal Immigration Minister Diane Finley said the changes will be noticed by people offering their skills to Canada. % J% f9 C* c: P( X
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The pact gives Alberta the power to nominate more immigrants possessing skills needed in the province and also provides more resources to help them settle here. " {/ f3 q& u3 Y: O0 [& P: z! k
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It’s a step in the right direction in breaking down time-consuming, frustrating barriers facing immigrants seeking to ply their skills here, said Fariboz Birjandian, chairman of the Alberta Association of Immigrant Serving Agencies.
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But Birjandian said Alberta’s often unaffordable housing remains a daunting hurdle for many newcomers. 9 k: K) o& V8 z9 n' F' Q
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“For people coming in, it is a bigger issue for settling in,” he said. & q: `1 z, q! d/ M9 U- K- `* B. |
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“And we don’t want Calgary becoming a city where all the rich people live on one side and all the poor on the other.”
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Stelmach said the province is giving $285 million in new money for affordable housing and is trying to tackle that problem. |
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