John Baird: While the G20 talks will focus on global economic issues and job creation, informal discussions about Syria will be held on the margins of the summit, Baird told reporters Wednesday while en route to Russia, according to CTV. s Omar Sachedina, who is covering the G20 summit, said Harper and Baird will have to contend with tensions between the U.S. and Russia, the latter of which has been supportive of the Syrian government and As world leaders gather in St. Petersburg, Russia for the G20 summit, the crisis in Syria has prompted several foreign ministers, including Canadas John Baird, to join their countries delegations. Obviously the crisis in Syria has become the biggest humanitarian challenge of this century and the escalation of the brutality of President Bashar Assads regime against the Syrian people is of such great concern that obviously we need to take some time to discuss how to properly address it, he said. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

Bruce Heyman: Bruce Heyman has encountered some complications during vetting, but so far there are no insurmountable obstacles in his path to the job, says a source familiar with the discussions. , according to Winnipeg Free Press. Heyman hasn't returned calls this summer. Repeated requests for information from both the White House and the State Department about who's replacing David Jacobson, the former U.S. envoy who left the post in July, have also gone unanswered for weeks even as the administration announced a slate of other ambassadorial nominations. WASHINGTON - A Chicago Goldman Sachs executive and big-time fundraiser for U.S. President Barack Obama is still on track to become the new American ambassador to Canada despite rumours over the summer that his complex investment portfolio had disqualified him. In a story Wednesday about Canadian complaints over the delay in naming a new U.S. envoy to Canada, the Washington Post reported that Heyman has already undergone the State Department's diplomatic "charm school" training, an almost certain sign that he'll soon be announced publicly as Obama's pick. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

Nova Scotia Human Rights Commission: Elsworth Bottomley complained to the Nova Scotia Human Rights Commission that a number of racial incidents occurred during his two years working at the store, according to CBC. Just referring to me as not being intelligent, very stupid because of my colour. Things like that, he said. The 45-centimetre high black statue, which Leons carries in stock, was hanged by the neck with tape. Its eyes were painted white in what a human rights lawyer calls 'blackface' style. Elsworth Bottomley A former Leons furniture employee is alleging racial discrimination after he says a statue was lynched in effigy at a store in Dartmouth, N.S. Bottomley, who is black, said he was called the N-word and a fellow driver sent him a text message made denigrating comments about the intelligence of black people. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

visa application: The federal government and the union representing diplomats and immigration officers abroad have been locked in a contract negotiation battle for months. As part of escalating job action measures, diplomats at 15 key visa application centres including Beijing, Delhi, Sao Paolo and Mexico City have withdrawn their services, according to CBC. Vasquez is trying to renew his visa but the diplomats strike is hampering his application and International students studying in Canada are being faced with the possibility of having to leave the country due to an ongoing strike by civil servants who process foreign visa applications. Cristobal Vasquez from Peru is trying to renew his visa so he can continue his studies at St. Thomas University. Cristobal Vasquez is from Peru. Not only does the fourth year political science student study at St. Thomas University, he also works there. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

Senator John McCain: The resolution passed by a 10-7 vote, aided by support of three Republicans, including Senator John McCain, according to CBC. Some minor changes to the resolution were made and A Senate panel has voted to give U.S. President Barack Obama the authority to use military force against Syria in response to what the White House claims was a deadly chemical weapons attack perpetrated by the Syrian regime. Earlier, McCain, an outspoken advocate of intervention in Syria, had said he did not support the resolution, saying he wanted more than cruise missile strikes and other limited action. He had also sought a stronger response aimed at "reversing the momentum on the battlefield" and hastening the departure of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

Barack Obama: WASHINGTON The Obama administration faced a tough examination of its plans for military strikes in Syria on Wednesday as the debate moved into the opposition-controlled House of Representatives, where the significant support the proposal has received in the Senate will be harder to find, according to The Chronicle Herald. Asked about his past comments drawing a red line against the use of chemical weapons, Obama said the line had first been clearly drawn by a chemical weapons treaty ratified by countries around the world and President Barack Obama, speaking from Sweden at the beginning of a European visit, said the credibility of the international community is on the line in the debate over to a response to the alleged use of chemical weapons in Syria. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

Calgary Mayor Naheed Nenshi: Quebec is hoping to implement new rules to prevent public sector workers everyone from teachers to bureaucrats from wearing any type of religious symbols as attire, according to CTV. Nenshi has now been getting national attention after he waded into the issue on the weekend and Calgary Mayor Naheed Nenshi has never been afraid to say what he thinks and he says he isnt backing down from comments he made over the weekend over Quebecs controversial policy against religious symbols. That includes hijabs, kirpans, and crucifixes. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne: THUNDER BAY, Ont. - Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne has become the latest Canadian political leader to criticize Quebec's proposal to ban public servants from wearing religious symbols. , according to Winnipeg Free Press. That's not something Ontario will be doing, Wynne said Tuesday. Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne speaks to the media regarding her party's by-election results at Queen's Park in Toronto on Friday, August 2, 2013. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Nathan Denette The Parti Quebecois government has proposed a Charter of Quebec Values which reportedly would restrict the right of public employees to wear religious items like turbans, yarmulkes, hijabs and visible crosses. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

Destination Cape Bretons: C.B. gone missing, according to The Chronicle Herald. However, your recent article on how a two per cent drop in tourism this year has played out across Nova Scotia, confirms that criticism. At no point in the article is Cape Breton mentioned. Thats a pity! It ignores Destination Cape Bretons findings that Cape Breton tourism is up 37 per cent over last year, with an 89 per cent rise in visits to the Sydney area and Having lived in Halifax 30 years ago prior to moving to Sydney, I have always been reluctant to accept the criticism of Cape Bretoners that Haligonians assume Nova Scotia ends at the causeway. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

Alberta: The study found there were plenty of people moving to Alberta between 2004 and 2009. But only one in four who were coming for jobs decided to make Alberta their primary residence. They listed their home province on their tax returns, according to CTV. "It is likely that factors such as family ties, social networks, organizational arrangements e.g. daycare, school enrolment , home ownership and quality of life were important factors," they wrote and CALGARY -- A Statistics Canada study suggests that the lure of jobs in Alberta's energy sector isn't enough to persuade out-of-province workers to make a permanent move. "While some of the inter-provincial workers observed in this study subsequently made a residential move to Alberta, at least as identified on their T1 tax return, most did not," wrote the authors, Christine Laporte, Yuqian Lu and Grant Schellenberg. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.