Specifically with regard to students, I know from our research—I will be able to provide the document I have and all of the survey responses to everybody here—that there was quite a bit of pressure put on the students by family members back home, wherever they were originally from, to make those connections in Cape Breton and to find a way to get a job after they graduate. Not only did they want to have their son or daughter successfully go through school, but they saw an opportunity to potentially bring their business to Canada, where it perhaps is much cheaper to purchase land. For example, maybe you have a textile company back home in a very small building and can buy a warehouse for a much more reasonable price in Cape Breton. I like to say “Cape Breton”. I'm a little biased.
However, yes, those families were waiting in line to come, but they simply couldn't navigate the immigration process. When our students were looking to go to their post-graduate work visa application, they were constantly struggling and worrying about how they would transition from post-grad to permanent residency with no immigration settlement services on the island. They would have to travel five hours down the line to see an immigration-specialized doctor to sign off on one piece of paper, and they would say, “I'm not staying in Cape Breton. I'm staying wherever the services are.” It was the students who told us that we need to have more services throughout the regions in order for our communities to continue.