QUEBEC CITY - A new immigration policy proposed by the opposition Coalition Avenir Québec (CAQ) is “foolish” according to Quebec Premier Philippe Couillard.
On Monday CAQ leader Francois Legault proposed that the province deport immigrants who don’t eventually integrate into the French language, fulfill labour needs or endorse Quebec values. The CAQ proposal would give new arrivals three years to fulfill the qualifications.
The plan would force qualified workers to flee the province or simply avoid coming in the first place, Couillard said.
Failure to satisfy the three criteria – knowledge of French, employment, adherence to the Character of Rights and Freedoms – would lead to the revocation of an immigrant's Quebec Selection Certificate, a document required in order to become a permanent resident of Canada.
Legault told the National Assembly Tuesday that 42 percent of Quebec’s 50,000 annual immigrants don’t speak French and that 78 percent don’t take integration courses. He said that 17 percent of immigrants who arrived here less than five years ago are unemployed.
