It's certainly not new in terms of other jurisdictions. In fact, Canada I think is one of the only major immigrant-receiving countries that currently lacks the ability to go through some sort of occupational filter to ensure we are matching skills with needs in the domestic market. Other countries, such as Australia, New Zealand, and the U.K., have similar sorts of systems that allow them to establish priorities based on labour market needs.
On April 28th, 2008. See this statement in context.