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Thursday, October 08, 2009
Welcome To Canada, Your Check is in the Mail
It's about the old folks, you see.
For Ruby Dhalla, offering pensions to immigrant seniors after just three years in Canada is about lifting people up out of poverty, not pandering for votes. The Liberal MP for Brampton-Springdale says the issue of immigrant seniors living in poverty is one that has been raised time and again, dating back to before her entrance into electoral politics. It's this desire to help low income seniors that led her to introduce her private member's bill, C-428, to grant all immigrant seniors access to the Old Age Security pension plan after three years in Canada rather than the current ten.
The last time we heard from Ms Dhalla, she was in full tear mode over a "caregiver" scandal. Having moved on, the honourable member for Brampton-Springdale is asking the tax payers to subsidize the elderly of the developing world, or at least that part of which arrives on Canadian soil. To our amazement, the Conservative Minister, Diane Finley, gives the perfect common sense response:
Human Resources Minister Diane Finley sees nothing unfair about the current system, saying ten years in Canada is enough time for someone to contribute to Canadian society before taking benefits. Finley calls Dhalla's bill outrageous, saying, "Canadians who have been here, worked hard and paid into the system all their lives would suddenly be supporting people who have only been here three years and not contributed to our society and to our economy."
Conservative politician says conservative thing. That should be the headline. The issue isn't letting people of certain age immigrate, it's letting them free ride off the tax dollars earned by others, including other immigrants. Contrary to what the member alleges, this is crass vote buying. Immigrants bringing their elderly grandparents, while having someone else foot the bill for family reunification.
Posted by Richard Anderson on October 8, 2009 | Permalink
Comments
Check your spelling of "cheque". :)
Posted by: steven | 2009-10-08 7:13:18 AM
I thought the Americanism would spice things up
;)
Posted by: Publius | 2009-10-08 9:59:37 AM
Steven-The word "cheque" is disappearing from the language. Spellcheck no longer recognizes it. It will soon be considered a bit of Canadian dialect. I still use it, though.
Let's call a spade a spade. This is welfare, not a pension. Pensions are earned.
Posted by: dp | 2009-10-08 10:22:01 AM
dp, my spellcheck recognises cheque, so it depends on what kind of spellcheck you have. I suspect it is American English. I remain with those who spell it 'cheque' as opposed to the verb 'to check'.
What happened to the policy that if you sponsor family members as immigrants, you are financially responsible for their welfare until or unless they became self-supporting?
Posted by: Alain | 2009-10-08 12:17:57 PM
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