Refugees: Year and Targets

refugees: The targets include 40,000 refugees and protected persons, down from nearly 56,000 this year. "You know I was a bit shocked and surprised," said Chris Friesen, the director of settlement services with the Immigrant Services Society of B.C. He hoping the federal government reconsiders the targets, given the outpouring of support for refugees over the past year. "Give the general response of the Canadian public has been supportive to refugee resettlement, it just doesn't add up," said Friesen, according to CBC. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau even took the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge on a tour of the society new welcome centre for refugees in Vancouver. Yesterday federal Immigration Minister John McCallum announced new targets for the number of immigrants Canada will allow next year. Prince William and Kate meet with a family from Syria during a visit to the Immigrant Services Society in Vancouver in September. Canada is promising to take in 7,500 government-assisted refugees in 2017, down from nearly 20,000 admitted so far this year, and still fewer than the nearly 10,000 admitted in 2015. "Given the overall refugee crisis and the overall need for resettlement, we could and should do more," said Friesen. But when it comes to government-assisted refugees, the numbers are falling even more. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.