Change: Alberta and Refugee Claimants

change: Service Alberta Minister Brian Malkinson blamed Alberta's previous Conservative government for the 2012 change that barred refugee claimants from using federally issued ID to apply for a driver's licence, according to Toronto Star. Madeline Smith / Star Metro Calgary Calgary Centre for Newcomers CEO Anila Lee Yuen praised the change as an important part of helping refugee claimants build lives in Alberta. Service Alberta Minister Brian Malkinson said Alberta is the only province that had this type of barrier in place, and the change brings the government in line with policy in the rest of the country. Madeline Smith / Star Metro Calgary Mahmoud Al-Astal, a refugee claimant from Palestine, described the barriers he experienced when he couldn't get a driver's licence after arriving in Calgary. Malkinson blamed Alberta's previous Conservative government for the 2012 change that barred refugee claimants from using federally issued ID to apply for a driver's licence. Madeline Smith / Star Metro Calgary Refugee claimants are allowed to live and work in Canada while they wait for their immigration confirmation hearing with the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, and there is no reason why they shouldn't be allowed to drive during that time, he said. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.