Class Immigrants: Immigration Minister

Exact Breakdown Dept: Despite Opposition criticism, overall immigration levels for 2012 will remain steady at between 240,000 and 265,000 for the sixth consecutive year, according to Immigration Minister Jason Kenney, who introduced his department's annual report late Tuesday, according to Montreal Gazette. Besides a "slight increase" in such economic class streams, Kenney said the government is also expecting an increase in the number of parents and grandparents admitted through sponsorship and re-settled refugees under the Balanced Refugee Reform Act, which takes effect in June 2012 and will result in the re-settlement of more than 2,500 additional refugees a year and canada will expand the number of international students granted permanent resident status next year and will begin accepting foreign doctoral students into the federal skilled worker program this week, the federal government announced Wednesday. The exact breakdown of economic-, family-and refugee-class immigrants has yet to be released but Kenney offered some clues as to the mix Wednesday at a news conference to mark the 10,000th permanent resident through the Canadian Experience Class CEC stream which expedites permanent residency for qualifying skilled temporary foreign workers and international students. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.