New visa requirements hurt tourist operators, NDP says

NEWS RELEASE

TONY MARTIN, MP

************************** New Democrats condemn new visa requirements

Snap decision will choke off tourism industry OTTAWA - New visa requirements Immigration Minister Jason Kenney has imposed on visitors from Mexico and the Czech Republic is an ill-timed blow to Canada’s struggling tourism industry and threatens the relationship with one of Canada’s largest trading partners, said New Democrat MPs. “This couldn’t have come at a worse time, at the very height of the tourism season,” said New Democrat Tourism Critic Bruce Hyer. “More than 200,000 Mexican tourists visited Canada last year, but now many planning to visit Canada will have to cancel their bookings” The Canadian embassy in Mexico has already been swamped with visa applications, temporarily closing its doors in the wake of the announcement.

Despite giving only 48-hours notice for the changes, the embassy warns on its website that new visa applications will take at least 30-45 days to process. New Democrats are calling on the government to review this decision and immediately announce a delay on any new announcement until after the summer tourism season. “The minister is claiming these changes are due to a backlog of applications and yet he refuses to fill vacant seats on the immigration boards reviewing these claims,” said New Democrat Immigration Critic Olivia Chow. “This is a problem of their own making, and now their solution is to create more problems. This snap decision won’t address the backlog, but will hurt legitimate immigrants and refugees.” Mexico is Canada’s fifth largest trading partner.

Canada’s exports to Mexico totaled $9.5 billion in 2008.

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