Thank you, Mr. Chair. I know that was a very nice way of telling me not to get worked up. I appreciate the indirectness of it.
I want to start by acknowledging that we are meeting here on the traditional and unceded territory of the Algonquin people.
I am here today with the officials whom you named to discuss the work we're doing to strengthen the immigration system and reduce backlogs, and to manage the increased interest in Canada that we see at historic levels, and the need for skilled labour across the country.
As you know, in November, I tabled the immigration levels plan for 2024‑26, which stabilizes our annual levels to ensure a responsible path for immigration.
This plan will help businesses find the workers that they need, keep Canada on a path of long‑term economic success and ensure that we stay true to our humanitarian commitments.
At the same time, we are taking steps to ensure that our immigration levels are aligned with pressures in areas such as housing, notably, and infrastructure. We continue to work with all levels of government in this regard and are taking immediate action to address urgent housing challenges, notably for asylum claimants. Through the interim housing assistance program, in particular, Canada is providing $212 million to reimburse provinces and municipalities to provide safe shelters for asylum seekers and relieve housing pressures on municipalities. This includes $97 million for the City of Toronto alone, relieving pressures on the greater Toronto area as a whole.
More recently, we announced $7 million in funding towards a new reception centre in Peel to provide temporary shelter for asylum seekers and divert them from the shelter system, helping to relieve pressures on Peel and the surrounding area. Not only will this provide asylum seekers with warm shelters ahead of the winter months, but the Peel reception centre will also connect them to essential services and supports. We're also taking steps to improve processing times so that we can welcome skilled newcomers to Canada more quickly and more efficiently.
Through changes to our permanent resident immigration programs, we're bringing in the workers needed to address skills and labour shortages across the country.
This month, I met with my provincial and territorial counterparts to discuss the need to attract skilled workers to address critical labour shortages and to work in a more coordinated fashion.
For instance, construction companies are looking to hire thousands of workers to help build new homes and infrastructure.
The funding will also contribute to capacity building and overall system and processing improvements that support the immigration levels for this year, next year and 2025.
It will also improve the efficiency of temporary resident processing by streamlining immigration processes to help employers in vital sectors like agriculture, health care, construction and technology to bring in skilled foreign workers more efficiently.
These investments in technology and processing capacity are critical. We've been facing unprecedented demand to come to Canada across many categories of newcomers.
With new digital solutions, automating certain administrative tasks, and streamlining processes, my department is reducing wait times and application inventories to bring in workers, students and visitors here more efficiently. Funding for improving our temporary resident processing will help us speed up visitor visa work and study permit applications and the decisions that come with them.
While our focus remains on economic immigration that supports employers and communities, we're continuing to fulfill our commitments to reunite families and address humanitarian crises.
That is why we extended support for those affected by Russia's illegal invasion of Ukraine, providing temporary refuge for more than 200,000 Ukrainian nationals and their family members.
The funding reflects the extension of the Canada‑Ukraine authorization for emergency travel from March to July of this year. The support measures needed after these vulnerable newcomers arrive have been extended until March 2024.
The Government of Canada allocated $53 million as part of the Canada‑Ukraine authorization for emergency travel to support Ukrainian nationals in Quebec in 2022‑23 and 2023‑24.
Overall, these measures align with our plan to stabilize immigration, while helping businesses find the workers they need both quickly and efficiently.
We continue to harness our immigration system to chart Canada on a path of long-term success, all while staying true to our humanitarian traditions as a country.
Thank you.
I look forward to answering your questions.