Beyond the debate of figures on the number of immigrants that should be welcomed in Quebec, it is rather the reception capacity in the regions that we must be interested in, argued several community organizations during the fourth day of consultations on immigration. To do this, they insisted to the assembled elected officials, the government must rely on their expertise and improve their resources so that they can offer more adequate services and increase their retention rate.
“The more people there are to welcome and support in the integration process – temporary as well as permanent – the more it requires resources, both human, material and financial,” argued the Regroupement des interveners en Chaudière-Appalaches , made up of several organizations from this region.
The diversity of migratory situations and statuses of newcomers also requires targeted and personalized support services so that they can all contribute to their host society.
For example, temporary workers, who constitute 80% of the clientele of organizations in this group, require more time and resources than permanent residents. “Their integration is shouldered at arm’s length by organizations which do not receive significant funding,” we can read in the brief.
Also, asylum seekers need to have access to childcare services, just like other immigrants, has repeatedly insisted Alain Brebion, reception and integration officer for the MRC of Montmagny.
Even for francization, the Legault government’s initiatives miss the target and do not meet the needs of the community. In fact, a portal like Francisation Québec only makes the registration process more cumbersome and extends the deadlines, argued the Regroupement des interveners en Chaudière-Appalaches, which has several organizations in Beauce.
More money for devitalized regions
In eastern Quebec, in Gaspésie, the Matanie New Arrivals Welcome Service (SANAM) does not believe that there is a “magic number” to very precisely quantify reception capacity. Pleading for better funding for her organization, the director of SANAM, Annie Veillette, however insisted that the government take into account the specificities of the different regions. They should not all be put in the same basket, she insisted.
“A more devitalized environment like ours would like to have more resources. […] If we had an envelope modulated according to the level of devitalization, that would give us a chance. »
The Advisory Council on Jewish and Israeli Relations also urges the government to adopt a funding policy that is “more flexible and more focused on needs” and not just based on the region where the newcomer settles. “Deciding where funds are allocated on a geographic basis creates a silo view,” the organization argued.
Countering exile in the ROC
Supporting the proposal to welcome — at a minimum — 60,000 permanent immigrants, the Chamber of Commerce of Metropolitan Montreal (CCMM) also recommended “clearly specifying the elements that define our reception capacity” and consulting stakeholders to improve it. Its president and CEO, Michel Leblanc, also recalled that it was important to reduce delays to remain competitive with permanent immigration programs in the rest of Canada.
Before parliamentarians, the Canadian Bar Association agreed with this by expressing its fear of seeing several candidates for permanent immigration exile to other provinces, due to the increased delays in immigrating to Quebec and the new obligation to speak French.
“Choosing knowledge of French as a priority and eliminatory selection criterion risks generating a drain of Francophile and Francotropic skills and talents who will be attracted by more accessible programs elsewhere in Canada,” worried the ABC, Quebec Division .
According to the director of the Concordia Student Union Legal Information Clinic, Walter Chi-Yan Tom, if the number of Quebec Selection Certificates issued to students does not increase significantly, “it is because they will seek [la résidence permanente] elsewhere. » He also deplored the fact that students from English-speaking universities are excluded from the Quebec Experience Program (PEQ).