Canada set to unveil Syrian refugee plan

Ministers Jane Philpott, John McCallum, Harjit Sajjan and Mélanie Joly, said that the plan is one that balances the security and humanitarian goals of Canada.

The newly elected Liberal government had committed itself to bringing in refugees in during the election campaign.

The Liberal government has unveiled how it aims to bring 25,000 Syrian refugees to Canada. But Trudeau and his ministers had stood by the plan – at least until Tuesday. And that doesn’t address concerns about security. Those include the need to get documents for Syrians to leave the countries where they are now located, the need to ensure proper accommodation, and challenges identifying all 25,000.

The Canadian government will allocate up to $678 million over six years towards the resettlement and integration of Syrian refugees in Canada.

The province is still waiting for specific numbers on how many refugees will come to B.C. – which is a federal decision, said Bond.

Upon arrival in Canada, most of the refugees are expected to transit straight through to the 36 communities that have offered to sponsor them.

Kurland said it can cost up to $50,000 for a private group to sponsor a family in Vancouver, whereas that money may stretch to two or three families elsewhere.

“What Canadians should care about is whether or not the government can put together a plan that both cares for refugees and protects the safety of Canadians”.

“Security screening will be fully completed overseas”, Goodale added.

The government will accept vulnerable refugees including complete families, women at risk, members of the LGBTI community and single adult men if they’re identified in the LGBTI community or accompanying parents as part of a family unit.

“This is not the ideal scenario to protect vulnerable people -women and children and men too”.

Those priorities will not apply to refugees brought in through private sponsorship.

James Hollifield, an expert on refugees and immigration with the Washington-based Wilson Center, said that Canada tends to be a “big outlier” compared with other western nations in its openness to accepting immigrants and refugees. “If they sense there’s anything there that causes them concern or discomfort or doubt, they will set aside that file and move on to the next applicant”, he says.

“We have a responsibility to significantly expand our refugee targets and give more victims of war a safe haven in Canada”, Trudeau said in a statement. However, the hope was that there would be enough spaces in communities to take them all in.

The planned announcement Tuesday of how Canada will take in thousands of Syrians in the coming months will drive local, national and worldwide efforts into high gear.

As Congress rushes to block Syrian refugees from entering the United States, our neighbor to the north is instituting a policy that will allow single gay men from the war-torn country-but not heterosexual ones.