Canada says may miss end-of-year Syrian refugee target

Canada could double its intake of Syrian refugees next year.

During the election, the Liberals promised to bring 25,000 Syrian refugees into Canada by the end of the year, a higher number than both the NDP and Conservatives combined.

Nonetheless, he said he was “very confident” that 10,000 or more refugees will be processed as permanent residents by the end of the year and that 25,000 refugees would be in Canada before the end of February.

Speaking at a briefing on Wednesday, McCallum said 10,000 refugees will be “verified” by December 31, but not all will be on Canadian soil. He said that initially there was a “good chance” for achieving the goal by the end of the year, but given the present situation, there are only eight days left to bring in 8,000 refugees.

McCallum said such factors as poor flying weather, as well as other circumstances, could prevent the government from meeting its goal.

McCallum, speaking from the Jordanian capital of Amman, said the country will expand the program in 2016 to take in 50,000 additional people.

Mr. McCallum said the government is “moving heaven and earth” to bring in as many refugees as quickly as possible, rejecting the argument that he was “playing politics with people’s lives” by making unrealistic promises to refugees.

“The effects (of the refugee crisis) will continue in 2016 to have a major impact on the political agenda in Europe and the world”, said Gilles Carignan, vice-president of information and assistant editor of Le Soleil.

Immigration officials say 1,869 Syrian refugees have arrived in Canada so far. But it pushed its deadline back to February after the deadly November attacks in Paris, saying it would bring in 10,000 by year-end.

It did so after listening to the widespread concerns of Canadians about proper security vetting and whether government and private agencies and individuals sponsoring refugees would be ready to integrate them into Canada successfully in such a short time frame. The majority of them – 1,297 are privately sponsored refugees, which means they have been sponsored either by family members in Canada or private organizations, community groups, churches and mosques.

“It’s certainly not guaranteed”, McCallum said.

Another flight-load of refugees will be leaving the Middle East on Christmas Day and arriving in Canada on December 26.