Immigration: House Of Commons Committee

Economic Immigration Dept: The Tory majority on the committee also wants the government to make skilled workers the priority, particularly the 300,000-strong backlog in applications received prior to 2008, according to Montreal Gazette. "We know that immigration can and will be part of the solution to our economic needs. That's why we think it's important that the government act decisively and quickly to deal with the backlog, especially the backlogs in the economic immigration categories." Though divided along party lines, a House of Commons committee ultimately wants the federal government to consider more caps on applications for immigration in order to tackle a backlog that's now reached nearly 1 million, according to a report tabled Tuesday. "We believe the government's primary focus should be on jobs and growth to drive our economy," said Rick Dykstra, parliamentary secretary to Immigration Minister Jason Kenney. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.