The first planeload of Syrian refugees from camps in Jordan and Lebanon will arrive in Canada on Thursday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said on Wednesday.
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A government tender posted last week indicated the first plane was expected in Canada on Thursday.
It’s still unclear exactly when the first charter flights carrying Syrians will begin arriving at the Toronto and Montreal airports.
While Canada prepares to welcome tens of thousands of Syrian refugees in the next couple of months, some refugees from the war-torn country have already settled in Hamilton for over a year.
Commenting on the poll findings, Forum Research President, Dr. Lorne Bozinoff says “Canadians are welcoming people, but the controversy that has arisen over the timing of the refugee arrivals, and the security screening they will go through, has had the effect of eroding some of that welcome”.
McCallum provided an update on the progress of processing Syrian refugee applications Wednesday, reporting that 11, 932 applications have been received and 1,451 permanent resident visas have been issued.
“We are working very hard to be successful in terms of these goals”, he said in French during a news conference.
There is no guarantee, however, that the Lebanese government will continue to help with exit visas given that an election is taking place in Lebanon tomorrow.
Initially, that promise had been to bring all those people to Canada by year’s end, but the government was forced to spread the commitment over a longer time period because of the logistics involved.
All of the refugees from Lebanon will travel to Jordan, from which they will depart for Canada.
Meanwhile, McCallum cited a recent poll that suggested a growing number of Canadians are in favour of accepting 25,000 Syrian refugees.
The new Syrian refugees will also be eligible for the basic provincial health coverage that is provided to all Canadians plus supplements for drug coverage, eyeglasses, dentistry and other medical needs that is available to Canadians who are on social assistance.
“We do have to be careful that the refugees not be seen to queue jump, if you will. And so, one of the areas for that is becoming a citizen”.
He said groups who have formal contracts with the government for settlement services will get more money this year.
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Canadian Red Cross president Conrad Sauve says more than four million Syrians have been displaced as a result of internal conflict.
