The CAQ unveiled its new immigration policy this month; the party says it plans on reducing the number of immigrants to Quebec by 20 per cent, and to negotiate more power from the Federal government over this file.

Part of the reason given by the CAQ is to help immigrants integrate better, but those who work with newcomers say it may, in the end, mean fewer services.

A recent CROP poll found 64 per cent of Quebecers support the reduction.

Those who work in integration programs – like Bienvenue a Notre-Dame-de-Grace – are worried, since fewer immigrants means they’ll have to cut back on services.

“We’re going to be struggling even more, because right now, our staff is doing a lot of extra volunteering because the challenge is to provide services to everyone arriving in the neighbourhood,” explained Luis Miguel Christancho, director of the non-profit. “We have a lot of hours of volunteering, a lot of hours that don’t go into the payroll, because they are extremely committed.”

Daily French classes are just one of the services offered by Bienvenue a Notre-Dame-de-Grace.

Many of the clients here are asylum seekers who don’t qualify for all the services immigrants do. This means volunteers are crucial – providing everything from legal services, winter wardrobes, and seminars on how to enjoy the cold season.

“Before I was seeing this in movies, and now I’m dealing with this,” said Dina Basigny, who immigrated with her family from Egypt.

Since then, thanks in part to this program, Basigny’s children have been able to integrate and find work. She says she wants to start a new business with her husband, but in order to do that, she needs to continue French courses.

“They give me the big support, they give me Francais, of course, and they also give me a family because I love vert much my colleagues and professor,” she said.

Christancho says integration is happening at Bienvenue, but not enough people are aware of the positive contribution immigrants make.

“The idea that immigrants don’t want to speak French and they don’t want to work – this is not true,” he explained. “What we have here is people taking classes and studying and working at the same time.”

“All of us are committed to having this dream of a better quality of life,” he added.