Liberals say details on refugee resettlement plan coming Tuesday. Adrian Wyld, The Canadian Press
OTTAWA — How the Liberal government
intends to bring thousands of Syrian refugees to Canada by year's end will
become clear Tuesday with the rollout of the plan for the largest rapid
resettlement program in the country's history.
Federal ministers would not divulge
any elements of the proposal Friday or comment on a document obtained by The
Canadian Press that suggests the cost of the program could hit $1.2 billion,
far more than the $250 million the Liberals budgeted in their platform to
resettle 25,000 Syrian refugees.
The document, called
"Responding to the Syrian Refugee Crisis: Rapid Resettlement of 25,000
Syrians Funding Table," lays out costs over the next six years and says
$876.7 million would be needed in 2015-2016 alone.
Some of that would be covered by
$16.6 million announced by the previous Conservative government during the
election and $100 million coming out of an existing pool of funds to respond to
international crises.
What's not clear from the undated
document is whether any of those funds are going to help the settlement
agencies, provinces or cities which will bear the burden of the longer-term
integration of refugees.
Immigration Minister John McCallum
said Friday that in recent days he's spoken to dozens of mayors and the premiers
of all 13 provinces and territories. A call with big city mayors is
scheduled for Monday, the same day Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is to meet the
provincial and territorial premiers.
"In all cases, I have said the
same thing," McCallum said. "I have said that, yes, we are determined
to bring refugees here quickly, but we are also determined to do it right in
terms of security and in terms of health. "This is the right thing to do.
It is the Canadian way."
Under the funding model in the
document, the Public Health Agency would receive $8.6 million this year for the
program. The Immigration Department would need $528.4 million and the Defence
Department $98.7 million. The Canada Border Services Agency is the only
department that would receive funding in each of the next six years, for a
total of $48.8 million by the time the money runs out in 2020-2021.
Later Friday, McCallum was expected
to address a gathering of settlement agencies in Toronto which are working
together in preparations for the influx of people.
Among the major concerns is where
they are all going to live. While the military is planning to house some
temporarily on bases and the government is actively seeking other options, the
people coming will need permanent homes. "I call upon Canadians, if they
have access to free or cheap but decent lodging, help us out, we want to hear
from you," McCallum said.
Several local agencies have set up
online or telephone contact points for people to register support. One
Toronto-based organization has even created a mobile phone application.
Conservative Immigration critic
Michelle Rempel said she hopes the details revealed Tuesday are robust and
answer all the questions non-governmental organizations, provinces and
Canadians have about how exactly this program is going to run.
"I don't think there is anyone
of any political stripe that doesn't want to show compassion and doesn't want
to help," she said.
"But to ask about screening, to
ask about housing, how much it is going to cost, these are fair
questions." NDP Immigration critic Jenny Kwan
said the government owes it to Canadians and to the refugees to handle this
right. "We'll be watching closely to
make sure the Liberals stick to their promise to Canadians," she said in a
statement.
"And we'll make sure the
discrepancy between their platform and what the reality looks like doesn't
become an excuse for the Liberals to backtrack on their promises."
The Canadian Press
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