Ottawa has stopped accepting new sponsorships for permanent residence until 2014, hoping to cut the current backlog of 165,000 parents and grandparents by half.

Super visa only for those who can afford it
By Nicholas Keung
January 18, 2012
Felix Zhang was thrilled when Ottawa launched a “super visa” last month to allow parents and grandparents of newcomers to visit Canada and stay here for up to two years.

But the pricetag for the mandatory health insurance required under the program is a huge obstacle for the Zhangs and many other immigrant families. The private insurance typically costs $2,000 to $4,000 depending on which company is writing the policy and the age and medical history of the insured.

Canadian Immigration Department Issues over 15,000 Super Visas Since Dec 2011
Posted on March 7, 2013

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Parents and grandparents of permanent residents and citizens of Canada can visit Canada for up to ten years with a Parent and Grandparent Super Visa (Diego Grez)

The federal government has issued over 15,000 Parent and Grandparent Super Visas since the launch of the program in December 2011.

Syrian Canadians despair for relatives trapped by war, call on Kenney to do more
Mike Blanchfield, Friday, February 22, 2013 4:53 PM

(…)

OTTAWA – Every bomb that explodes in Damascus strikes at the heart of a woman in suburban Ottawa, leaving her to wonder why the government here is not helping to get her son out of the besieged Syrian capital.
Leila, not her real name, knows that her 27-year-old son is hiding somewhere in Damascus, trying to keep one step ahead of a security apparatus that has his name on a list of forced conscripts.

Friends of the Sri Lankan family said seven people lived in the dwelling.

5 hospitalized after Scarborough house fire 
By Irene Thomaidis ,Toronto Sun 
First posted: Tuesday, November 06, 2012 07:00 AM EST | Updated: Tuesday, November 06, 2012 09:20 PM EST
Paramedics rush a child to hospital after he was rescued from a burning home on Canlish Rd. (VICTOR BIRO/Special to the Toronto Sun)

TORONTO – Heartbreak gripped an east Toronto neighbourhood where fire ripped through a home as three generations of family slept inside.

Five residents were taken to hospital – two in serious condition and one clinging to life Tuesday after Toronto firefighters rescued them from the burning bungalow on Canlish Dr., in the Birchmount Rd.-Lawrence Ave. E. area.

Friends of the Sri Lankan family said seven people lived in the dwelling.

News conference. During a press congerence yesterday at the Delta Meadowvale Hotel & Conference Centre, Immigration Minister Jason Kenney announces that the federal government will accept 25,000 parents and grandparents under its family reunification plan. Supplied photo

John Stewart
Nov 06, 2012 – 8:58 AM

Immigration family plan is working: Kenney

News conference. During a press congerence yesterday at the Delta Meadowvale Hotel & Conference Centre, Immigration Minister Jason Kenney announces that the federal government will accept 25,000 parents and grandparents under its family reunification plan.

Supplied photo
The federal government’s scheme to reunify families faster is working, Immigration Minister Jason Kenney said yesterday in Mississauga.
“We listened to Canadians who told us the old program with eight-year wait times just didn’t work,” Kenney told a press conference at the Delta Meadowvale Hotel & Conference Centre.

National News
National News: Immigration policy should build a stronger Canada, not exploit the vulnerable

Contributed by admin on Nov 02, 2012 – 11:31 AM

NDP Immigration critic Jinny Sims (Newton – North Delta) is urging the Conservative government to invest in Canadian workers and reunite families instead of undermining the Canadian job market by exploiting Temporary Foreign Workers.

“There is no good reason for the Conservatives to be bringing in tens of thousands of temporary foreign workers when so many Canadians and newcomers are out of work,” said Sims. “Temporary workers from other countries drive wages down and are rarely permitted to remain in Canada. Instead of investing here, they understandably send most of their earnings back to their home countries.”