Canadian economy took a hit in 2015

   Canada column for Sunday, Jan. 3/16

   THE CANADIAN REPORT

   (c) By Jim Fox

   Canada’s economy was battered in 2015, with the dollar losing 16 percent of its value against the United States currency and the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSE) down 11 percent.

   With the arrival of the new year, Canadians face higher food and restaurant prices with the bite of a slumping dollar.

   There was no joy in Canada’s resource rich oil patches, primarily Alberta where 63,500 jobs were lost in the first eight months of the year while the average weekly pay fell 2.6 percent to $1,129 (Canadian).

   The drop in oil and commodity prices hit the dollar hard as it fell to 72 U.S. cents while pushing the U.S. dollar to near $1.40 Canadian.

   BMO economist Doug Porter said the “carnage” led to the third-worst year since 1992 when the buck fell by 9 percent.

   The TSE’s composite index ended the year at 13,009 points, compared with 14,632 a year ago and the worst since 2011.

   The dollar’s fall has led to higher food costs since 81 percent of all vegetables and fruit consumed in Canada are imported.

   University of Guelph’s Food Institute estimates the average Canadian household spent an additional $325 on food in 2015 and can expect to pay about $345 more this year.

   ---

Processing of Syrian refugees to enter Canada continues

   Canada column for Sunday, Dec. 27/15

   THE CANADIAN REPORT

   (c) By Jim Fox

   The Canadian government will meet its commitment to process 10,000 Syrian refugees for entry to Canada but they won’t all be here by year’s end.

   Immigration Minister John McCallum said he now can’t guarantee the Liberal government will be able to meet its goal of bringing in that number by Dec. 31.

   They will be “verified” by that date but not all will have arrived, he said, as the government remains committed to resettle 25,000 refugees by the end of February.

   Among the factors making the earlier goal unrealistic in such a short period since the government was elected in October are circumstances including poor flying weather.

   McCallum told reporters that hundreds of Canadian government representatives are working all out to process the refugees coming from Lebanon and Jordan.

   As of Dec. 21, almost 2,000 refugees have arrived and flights are continuing through the holidays, he said.

   To assist with cities and organizations helping to resettle the newcomers, McCallum announced the federal government would allocate another $15 million.

   ---

Canadian dollar value at 11-year low

   Canada column for Sunday, Dec. 20/15

   THE CANADIAN REPORT

   (c) By Jim Fox

   Canada’s dollar is worth less, plunging below 72 cents U.S., at an 11-year low.

   Factors causing the drop to 71.68 cents include slumping oil and commodity prices and a higher U.S. dollar due to a slight increase in interest rates there.

   That means it costs almost $1.40 Canadian for a U.S. dollar, plus bank and credit-card exchange fees.

   Economists expect the weaker dollar to continue, hitting 70 cents before rising slowly through the end of next year.

   This is making it more costly for “snowbirds” and vacationers from Canada who pay in U.S. dollars.

   So far, however, it hasn’t deterred many from their winter haunts in Florida, California, South Carolina, Arizona and other sunny spots.

   Florida attracts about 4.2-million Canadian vacationers annually and tourism officials say there’s only a slight drop this year.

   The lower dollar is also leading to higher food costs with fresh vegetables, especially lettuce and tomatoes from the U.S., rising by 10.9 percent.

   ---

Prime minister welcomes first Syrian refugee arrivals

   Canada column for Sunday, Dec. 13/15

   THE CANADIAN REPORT

   (c) By Jim Fox

   “You are home – welcome home,” Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said in greeting the first planeload of Syrian refugees to Canada.

   Trudeau and Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne were at Toronto’s Pearson International Airport as the first military flight of 163 Syrians arrived from Beirut.

   The new Liberal government said it will resettle 25,000 refugees escaping Syria’s civil war by the end of February.

   Upon arrival, they were given winter clothing and housed in an airport hotel before being transported this weekend to sponsored housing in British Columbia, Alberta and Ontario.

   During processing in Toronto and Montreal, the new arrivals are being given Social Insurance Numbers so they can work, government health-insurance cards for “free” medical care and become permanent residents.

   First to be greeted was Kevork Jamkossian, his wife Georgina Zires and 16-month-old daughter, Madeleine, clutching a teddy bear given to her by Wynne.

   “We suffered a lot but now we feel as if we got out of hell and we came to paradise,” he said.

   ---

Canadian government suggests number of Syrian refugees resettled could double

   Canada column for Sunday, Dec. 6/15

   THE CANADIAN REPORT

   (c) By Jim Fox

   As Canada prepares to welcome the first of 25,000 Syrian refugees, the government suggests that number could double over the next year.

   “The number of refugees is likely to be in the order of 35,000 to 50,000” by the end of next year, Immigration Minister John McCallum said.

   The first “mass flight” of up to 300 refugees from Turkey and Jordan is expected to arrive by chartered aircraft on Thursday.

   The new Liberal government made a commitment to resettle 25,000 refugees, along with those privately sponsored by churches and families, by the end of February.

   Those coming to Canada are undergoing security, immigration and health checks.

   Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and McCallum are urging Canadians to support the effort and help the refugees settle in.

   “There is a possibility of a social backlash against refugees if Canadians see them as being pampered,” McCallum said.

   Similar to Canada’s earliest settlers, many Syrian refugees will be arriving in the winter, said Governor-General David Johnston.

   “A warm Canadian welcome in a cold Canadian winter – what could be more fitting?” he added.

   ---

Drowned Syrian boy's family to be resettled in Canada's refugee aid

   Canada column for Sunday, Nov. 29/15

   THE CANADIAN REPORT

   (c) By Jim Fox

   The family of a Syrian boy whose body washed up on a Turkish beach will be “fast-tracked” among the 25,000 refugees being resettled in Canada.

   Relatives confirmed the family of Alan Kurdi, 3, who drowned when a boat packed with refugees sank, has been accepted by Canada.

   The country will admit 10,000 refugees by year’s end, with the remaining 15,000 by Feb. 28 under a revised commitment to ensure proper security and health screening.

   The first group making the trip will be made up largely of privately sponsored refugees fleeing the Syrian civil war.

   Immigration Minister John McCallum said priority will be given for government-sponsored newcomers to families, women at risk, members of sexual minorities and single men identified as gay, bisexual or transgender or part of a family.

   They will arrive in Toronto or Montreal and be resettled in 36 cities across Canada.

   So far this year 3,100 Syrian refugees have arrived under previous government commitments.

   Canada is also giving $100 million to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, making almost $1 billion the government has spent in response to the Syrian crisis.

   ---

Canada prepares to welcome 25,000 refugees

   Canada column for Sunday, Nov. 22/15

   THE CANADIAN REPORT

   (c) By Jim Fox

   The first wave of Syrian refugees is about to arrive in Canada among 25,000 people the new Liberal government pledges in a “rapid resettlement” by year’s end.

   Armed Forces’ bases and some decommissioned hospitals are among the facilities being readied to provide housing and other immediate needs for the migrants.

   Prime Minister Justin Trudeau hasn’t formally indicated any specifics to meet the Dec. 31 resettlement commitment for the group made up mostly of government-assisted refugees and some privately sponsored ones.

   A government document suggests the plan will cost the government $1.2 billion over the next six years, with $876.7 million needed through the next year.

   Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale said the resettlement can be done without compromising safety to Canadians as stringent background checks will be conducted.

   He called it a “humanitarian” mission that will “rescue people who are in terrible conditions and fleeing from the scourge.”

   After a series of anti-Muslim incidents across Canada, a coalition of anti-racism groups is concerned the migrants will become terrorist “scapegoats,” said Mohamed Boudjenane of the Canadian Arab Federation.

   Ontario, which is expected to receive most of the newcomers, has a committee planning for the provision of housing, education, health services and language and employment training.

   ---