food banks: The annual report by Food Banks Canada, issued Tuesday, reveals that 60,229 people used food banks in the province in March 2013, down 5.1 per cent from the previous year. , according to Winnipeg Free Press. And compared with March 2008, food bank use in the province was up 48.8 per cent, the study says. The number of Manitobans relying on food banks has dropped in the past year but still remains at near-record highs close to four years after the end of the economic recession. However, Manitoba reported the highest rate of children using food banks at 44.7 per cent. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

Eddie Izzard: Occasionally his synapses fire faster than his mouth can process them, leading to entertaining diversions, which can be expected when his Force Majeure cross-Canada tour stops at Halifaxs Rebecca Cohn Auditorium for two nights, Sunday and Monday, according to The Chronicle Herald. They re somewhere between the people who work at Mac computer stores and MAC Cosmetics stores, which is my kind of people, he says from London and Onstage, British comedian and actor Eddie Izzard is a manic ball of energy, leaping from thought to thought with an ability to connect brilliantly insane concepts with lightning speed. In conversation, the comic known for his sense of glam hes referred to himself with colourful terms like executive transvestite and male lesbian takes his foot off the adrenalin pedal, but the brain remains ever so sharp as he discusses his current shows themes and global adventures that include his upcoming visit among us Canucks, who he considers ideal audience members. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

Chris Alexander: It spiked. Between January and June, 125,000 temporary foreign workers were admitted into the country; a 5-per-cent increase over the same period last year, according to The Star. Chris Alexander , who became minister of citizenship and immigration in July, did his best to explain the embarrassing surprise and Since spring Canadians have been assured the number of temporary foreign workers entering Canada will drop, thanks to the restrictions put in place by Stephen Harpers government. It wasnt because businesses went on a hiring spree; Canadian job applicants were being turned away in droves. It wasnt because the economy was growing; it has been anemic all year. And it certainly wasnt because Canadians want more low-cost foreign labour pouring into the country. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

eligibility requirements: On Jan. 2, nine categories will be consolidated into three with new eligibility requirements, according to CTV. The government says the new category will provide increased flexibility by accepting several applications from workers with skills in high demand without the requirement of pre-arranged employment and The provincial government has announced changes to the Saskatchewan Immigrant Nominee Program. The family referral category will be combined with the skilled worker category to create a new international skilled workers category, which will focus on attracting workers with high-skilled employment offers. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

Food Banks Canada: The annual study by Food Banks Canada, scheduled for release Tuesday, shows that more than 833,000 people relied on food handouts during one snapshot month earlier this year, compared with 872,379 the previous March. More than a third of them were children. , according to Winnipeg Free Press. "During a time of apparent economic recovery, far too many Canadians still struggle to put food on the table." OTTAWA - The number of Canadians using food banks has fallen off slightly but still remains near record highs almost four years after the end of the economic recession. "Underlying this small drop is a concern of enormous proportions: food bank use remains higher than it was before the recession began," the report states. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

healthy children: His latest report, released Tuesday, found the health and the grades of children suffer when their parents deploy to Afghanistan, Haiti or other trouble spots around the world, according to Times Colonist. "Families and providers/supporters repeatedly conveyed situations of healthy children becoming sick during deployments." OTTAWA - The strain of what seems like never-ending conflict overseas in the last two decades is hurting the children and spouses of Canadian Forces members, says an in-depth study by military ombudsman Pierre Daigle. "From a health perspective, children of deployed military members were found to experience physical issues, including increased stress, sleeping problems and more than double the rate of occurrence of other ailments compared to similar children within the civilian population," the 89-page report said. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

Simon Bolivar International Airport: The incident occurred last Friday at the Simon Bolivar International Airport, in Caracas, Venezuela. Flight 075 was set to leave the airport at 7:15 a.m. for Toronto when passengers were asked to disembark from the plane by security due to a discrepancy with the number of passengers on board, according to Huffington Post. All five were escorted off, resulting in a five-hour delay for the Canada-bound flight. The airline referred to the incident as a delay caused by "immigration issues." Five passengers who managed to sneak on board an Air Canada flight using fake tickets have prompted an investigation by the airline. The captain of the flight found five extra passengers on board -- four Iranians and one Afghan -- with no visas to enter Canada , according to a translated media report from the airport. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

The Institute for Supply Management: The Institute for Supply Management said Tuesday that its service-sector index rose to 55.4 in October, up from 54.4 in September. Any reading above 50 indicates expansion, according to Times Colonist. The increase "supports other evidence suggesting that the wider economy shrugged off the government shutdown," said Paul Dales, an economist at Capital Economics. "With the shutdown over, the index may rise further in November as any postponed activity takes place." WASHINGTON - Activity at U.S. service firms accelerated in October behind a jump in sales and more hiring, suggesting businesses largely shrugged off the partial government shutdown. The expansion at service firms echoes an ISM survey of manufacturers released last week, which showed the fastest growth at factories in 2 1/2 years. Combined, the two reports suggest the private sector is showing steady growth and was not greatly affected by the shutdown. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

St. John s-Ravenscourt School: Brass is the universities advisor at St. John s-Ravenscourt School, and the guy who annually brings more than three dozen Canadian universities to the city for a recruiting fair. , according to Winnipeg Free Press. There are 37 schools coming to this years fair, which is an excellent opportunity to ask all the specific questions you want and pick up oodles of glossy brochures and get the addresses of websites galore chock-a-block with information. Peter Brass rolls out his annual road show this week, and if you ve got a kid in grades 11 or 12, you should plan on going. Hes also the guy I ve quoted umpteen times saying that, Macleans notwithstanding, there isnt a single public university in Canada at which you wont get a good education. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

GXS Group Inc.: The S P/TSX composite index was unchanged from Monday at 13,361.78, according to The Star. Shares in Open Text ran ahead $7.77 , or 10 per cent, to $85.32 as the software company said that it is buying U.S.-based cloud technology provider GXS Group in a cash-and-stock deal valued at approximately $1.17 billion. GXS Group Inc. a will become a subsidiary of Open Text based in Waterloo, Ont and The Toronto stock market closed flat Tuesday amid falling gold stocks, but the TSX found support from major corporate developments in the tech, energy and health-care sectors. Shares of Encana Corp. were up 62 cents, or 3.34 per cent, to $19.21 after the natural gas giant said it will create a new public company that will focus on southern Alberta. The Calgary-based company also announced a cut in its quarterly dividend to seven cents from 20 cents and that it would slash its workforce by 20 per cent as it struggles with persistently low prices. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.