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http://www.edmontonsun.com/News/Alberta/2007/05/13/4177280.html: D! f, T+ {3 i# X4 j" T
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' f3 [* _# @" f- I4 T4 y1 SCALGARY — 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.
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7 f# ]. M4 K1 |: `! fAlberta Premier Ed Stelmach says the agreement will cut red tape and give the province increased influence and control of immigration.
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6 Q: e* n4 _) S( l, wThe rise to 25,000 immigrant workers per year will happen over the next 10 years under the provincial nominee program. 0 E$ l- ?7 t& C$ R' ~
4 m/ }+ s3 k5 ]. {; KRight now, 2,500 workers per year come under the program. , t, \, N7 W- x
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Federal Immigration Minister Diane Finley said the changes will be noticed by people offering their skills to Canada. - d2 W6 \ w( B! M, e
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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. 0 J5 v- J- j+ G2 y/ F
1 l q$ X( ~$ W3 O7 e9 b; EIt’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. ; u& E: Z- M' v; p& i5 u0 h
3 M: P5 C$ V5 L" B6 I“For people coming in, it is a bigger issue for settling in,” he said.
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0 c/ I, c' i4 ]“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.” 8 ~/ e1 a. g4 M, Y+ M
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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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