Using ChatGPT to analyze open data immigration tables

2026/11/05 Leave a comment

For my quarterly updates, I have been working on how best to compile and analyze the various tables in a more time-efficient manner. Next quarter report will largely use ChatGPT for data tables rather than my previous manual approach.

As an example, the prompt I use for country of citizenship analysis is the following:

Using the following excel file INSERT LINK, prepare a table of quarterly statistics, header row to be quarter, header column to be country, organized from highest to lowest in 2018. Top row should be Canada total. Create separate data table for the top 25 countries, 2018 basis. Create subsequent tables that shows year over year percentage change and one that shows two-year changes. Prepare additional table showing annual comparisons in numbers, and same year-over-year and two year comparison.

Prepare a comparative annual year-to-date table as well.

Ensure thousand separators for numbers with percentages to one decimal place.

Freeze header columns and rows (Country and Canada).

Create one separate table that provides a regional summary, where the six rows are Canada, Asia, Africa, Americas, Europe, Oceania, with the top rows being numbers and below rows by percentage of Canadian total. No separate individual region views.

And here is the result:

IRCC_IMP_CITZ_quarterly_and_annual_tablesDownload

One of the better uses I have found for AI. Saves me from learning python (and yes, ChatGPT also creates python scripts).

Filed under Multiculturalism

Belleville synagogue members call for increased focus on counter-radicalization

2026/11/05 1 Comment

Not surprising. Given the relative number of “lone wolves,” not sure which approaches would be most effective:

…The government released a strategy on countering radicalization to violence in 2018.

The implementation of it falls to the Canada Centre for Community Engagement and Prevention of Violence. The Canada Centre, as it is known, has distributed millions in grants for counter-radicalization programming in the last eight years.

But the funding streams for the programs appear scheduled to soon dry up.

The Public Safety Department’s 2026-27 departmental plan, for example, notes the “maturation” of funding for the Canada Centre as being linked to the loss of 17 full-time equivalent positions.

Noah Shack, the chief executive officer of the advocacy group Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs, said at the news conference that he hopes Thursday’s federal budget renews and increases the funding.

He said those who work in counter-radicalization efforts say a common thread among those susceptible to violent extremism is hatred of Jews.

“So we know that in confronting antisemitism, we are getting at the root of a larger problem,” he said.

Source: Belleville synagogue members call for increased focus on counter-radicalization

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Indian students cite visa issues, job prospects and safety concerns for avoiding Canada

2026/11/03 Leave a comment

Not necessarily a bad development, depends on whether the impact is more at the lower skilled or higher talented end:

…Consultants in India say families who once asked how to get to Canada now ask whether to go.

Canada doubled the proof of funds it requires for a student visa from $10,000 to more than $20,000 in 2024.

“For many Indian families, it’s a lifetime savings. The risk of visa rejection has added to the uncertainty and put students off,” said Anjali Ingala, a consultant at GeeBee Education in Mumbai.

Study visa rejections rose from 38 per cent in 2023 to 52 per cent in 2024, according to ICEF Monitor, which tracks international student mobility.

Ms. Ingala said Indian students now also “worry whether they will be able to build a future for themselves after they arrive there.”

“Because of these uncertainties, we are not getting many new enquiries for admissions in Canada,” she said.

GeeBee Education used to send the highest number of students to Canada, but that has changed in the past 2½ years. “We are recording a dip of 80 per cent for Canada enquiries in Mumbai and other parts of India,” said Saahil Chheda, the consultancy’s general manager.

Mr. Chheda said inflation, rising accommodation costs and law and order issues have exacerbated the situation. However, with the warming of relations between two countries, he said, families have started enquiring about Canada for 2028.

Source: Indian students cite visa issues, job prospects and safety concerns for avoiding Canada

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Fighting accent bias is everyone’s job, not just accented speakers’

2026/11/03 Leave a comment

Of note. Reasonable recommendations although it may be harder for some in certain vulnerable situations like healthcare:

…Because there are few practical tools available, we conclude with three steps anyone can take:

Focus on what people are saying, not how they’re saying it.Asking an accented speaker where they’re from, or commenting on their accent, may seem harmless. But both shift attention away from the speaker’s message.

Listen with patience and empathy. Even if a person speaks with an accent, you can probably understand them. And if there is a word or phrase that you don’t catch, just ask.

Get to know accented speakers. The more you interact, the better you’ll understand them.

How would you respond when you experience accent bias?

Source: Fighting accent bias is everyone’s job, not just accented speakers’

Filed under Immigration, Multiculturalism Tagged with ,

Canada’s new immigration rule is helping this Toronto woman. But insiders say others are resorting to fraud

2026/11/02 Leave a comment

As always, some people will find a way:

…Experts say the new high-wage rules can help Canada attract and retain highly skilled migrants amid a still volatile immigration system. But the new rules that open a door for Sangam could also open a back door for others. They warn that the system is ripe for manipulation — and the gaming has already begun.

“All you need to do is just hop onto Reddit or go to some Facebook groups and read everyone’s posts,” said Kubeir Kamal, a Toronto-based immigration consultant.

“So many of them are asking, can I change my occupational code? What if my employer is giving me this job offer letter? You can see everybody is trying to figure out how they can circumvent this” for the bonus points.

Removing a safeguard to streamline job offer assessment

For years, Ottawa gave candidates in the immigration talent pool extra points for having a job offer validated through an approved labour market impact assessment by Employment and Social Development Canada. That bonus was removed in March 2025 out of fraud concerns.

“This temporary measure will reduce fraud by removing the incentive to illegally buy or sell labour market impact assessments to improve a candidate’s chances of being selected to come to Canada as a permanent resident,” the Immigration Department stated at the time.

As part of the changes announced in October, the government said high-wage job offers will not be scrutinized by ESDC. The Immigration Department will be solely responsible for verifying whether an offer is genuine.

Not long after the announcement, social media posts emerged showing that people are already talking about ways to embellish work experience and inflate job responsibilities to meet the occupational criteria on the high-wage list….

Source: Canada’s new immigration rule is helping this Toronto woman. But insiders say others are resorting to fraud

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Globe editorial: Immigration is not a provincial fiefdom

2026/11/02 Leave a comment

Good editorial with quotes by Skuterud. Shared jurisdiction, neither just federal nor provincial, and little to no evidence that provinces are better able to resist self-interested stakeholder pressures:

…If there are truly some regions of the country that can’t solve their labour problems without immigration, Prof. Skuterud says this should happen through a small standalone program, rather than being funnelled through the economic immigration system. The goals should be clearly defined, and success in terms of retention and other measures should be tracked.

Instead of empowering premiers to create provincial immigration fiefdoms, Ottawa should protect the federal system. The federal government should also reverse its own moves in recent years that have diluted its points system. Rather than using niche “category-based selections,” Ottawa should select economic immigrants with the highest scores in the general pool of candidates.

The federal and provincial governments should stop thinking of immigrants as fodder to plug labour gaps, subsidize post-secondary institutions or achieve other policy goals. Instead, they should revert to a federal system that selects highly skilled high-earners with the best chance at prospering and encourage them to live where they think they will do best. Further undermining Canada’s economic immigration program by giving the provinces increased control is a step in the wrong direction.

Source: Immigration is not a provincial fiefdom

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LoP: Employment Equity in Canada’s Federal Public Service

2026/10/30 Leave a comment

Useful primer. Revising the EE Act appears to be lessor priority for government:

Employment equity is the principle of correcting disadvantages and removing barriers that certain groups face to entering, remaining in or advancing in the workforce. Since 1996, the Employment Equity Act (the Act) has been the main tool for advancing this principle in Canada’s federal public service.

Among other measures, the Act requires monitoring the representation of four “designated groups” in the federal public service: women, “Aboriginal peoples,” “persons with disabilities,” and “members of visible minorities.”

Criticisms of the Act include the fact that it is limited to these four designated groups, uses outdated language in describing them and does little to encourage analysis of how multiple aspects of one’s identity may affect workplace experiences.

Recent data show progress in promoting all four groups within the public service. These data also suggest that all designated groups except people with disabilities have consistently been hired at rates that exceed their workforce availability.

However, the salaries of employees of designated groups are generally lower than those of other public servants. In addition, the groups and metrics chosen by the Act can mask other forms of inequality, including intersectional impacts within subgroups – such as specific ethnic groups within the broader “visible minorities” category – or inequalities faced by groups about which the Act is silent, such as two-spirit, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, asexual and other sexually and gender‑diverse employees.

A 2023 report commissioned by the Minister of Labour issued 187 recommendations for modernization of the Act, including several significant legislative changes. The report was followed by similar recommendations by the Standing Senate Committee on Human Rights. Despite initial agreement by the government at that time on several of these recommendations, no legislative changes have since been made.

Source: Employment Equity in Canada’s Federal Public Service

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Jewish community in Canada facing unprecedented threats, security officials warn

2026/10/30 Leave a comment

Of note:

Senior Canadian national-security officials are warning that the Jewish community in Canada is facing unprecedented and unparalleled threats, both in severity and number, in the aftermath of the Oct. 7, 2023 Hamas attack on Israel.

The officials told The Globe and Mail that the speed of radicalization in this country is creating risks to the Jewish community at a pace not seen since after the 2001 terrorist attacks in the U.S.

Officials from CSIS, the RCMP, Public Safety Canada and the Integrated Threat Assessment Centre said a convergence of threats now faces the Jewish community: white nationalists, people inspired by Islamic terrorist groups, threats from Iran, and online communities that specifically target young people to persuade them to carry out violent acts.

The Globe is not naming the officials because of the sensitive and often classified nature of their work….

Source: Jewish community in Canada facing unprecedented threats, security officials warn

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Rob Breakenridge: Danielle Smith bans DEI hiring, daring the NDP to oppose

2026/10/30 2 Comments

Virtue signalling as much as substance:

In the current political climate, it’s not likely a coincidence that the Alberta government is prioritizing the fight against woke, progressive politics — specifically, diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) policies.

As we’ve observed through previous policy initiatives, Alberta Premier Danielle Smith is no fan of DEI ideology. Tuesday’s announcement that the government has tabled Bill 33, the justice statutes amendment act, is the latest — and most significant — step to rid the public sector and other government agencies of woke policies.

Among other things, it mandates merit-based hiring within the public sector and other regulated provincial bodies — including post-secondary institutions, municipalities and, potentially, organizations that receive government funding.

The Alberta Human Rights Act will be amended to remove Section 10.1, which currently allows for hiring practices aimed at “the amelioration of the conditions of disadvantaged persons or classes of disadvantaged persons.”

Instead, hiring and promotion decisions will be based on merit and job requirements, with certain, limited exceptions — basically a situation where a specific characteristic is deemed to be a bona fide occupational requirement….

The United Conservatives are more than happy to engage on this political turf, and they’re almost daring the NDP to oppose this bill and to publicly align themselves with DEI policies. It remains to be seen whether the Opposition will take the bait, but it could put New Democrats on the defensive if their aim is to restore such hiring policies and mandates.

Again, the government would seem to have public opinion on its side, and the pendulum is already swinging away from the more aggressive implementation of these policies in recent years.

In fact, that backlash may be so pronounced that the push-back against Bill 33 could turn out to be relatively muted. That would mean a smoother implementation of what the government sees as better policy, but it would also defuse the potency of this issue as a culture war rallying cry for Smith and the UCP.

Source: Rob Breakenridge: Danielle Smith bans DEI hiring, daring the NDP to oppose

Filed under DEI, Multiculturalism Tagged with ,

Carney government’s immigration overhaul risks pushing Canadian wages down

2026/10/29 Leave a comment

Commentary on proposal of interest:

…Fortin said he does not yet know what dropping the LMIA will mean “on wages and job prospects for Canadian workers, but I am not optimistic.”

“After all, business is about maximizing profits, and maximizing profits requires minimizing labour costs,” he said.

That same incentive could go beyond holding down wages. Without the LMIA’s requirement to first look for Canadian workers, employers able to bring in cheaper hires from abroad could also choose to replace existing Canadian staff to reduce payroll costs.

Fortin also pointed to recent economics studies that have found the rapid pace of immigration to Canada in the past decade hurt Canada’s stagnant per capita GDP and the relative wealth of many Canadians. “There is compelling evidence that the Trudeau migratory explosion of 2016–2024 has affected Canadian productivity and income inequality among Canadians negatively,” citing various recent economics studies.

He blamed two forces. Investment went to housing and equipping newcomers rather than raising productivity. And Statistics Canada researchers found nearly half of employed temporary workers are in low-skilled, low-paid sectors such as agriculture, accommodation, and retail.

Fortin credits Diab for moving away from “this huge concentration of admissions of cheap labour in low-qualified occupations,” calling it “a step in the right direction.” But overall volumes must also come down, Fortin argues. He also warned that tying points to occupational codes rather than strictly earnings will add red tape….

Parisa Mahboubi, a senior policy analyst at the C.D. Howe Institute, told The Hub that economics research has generally found little harm to Canadian earnings from high-skilled immigration of the past. Where wage pressure or displacement occurs, it is more often concentrated among “lower-skilled or lower-paid workers who compete more directly with newcomers in specific occupations.”

“[But] a high-wage occupation does not guarantee that a candidate will earn a high wage in Canada,” she said.

She also flagged fraud as a major concern. “A substantial points advantage for job offers can create incentives for fraudulent or non-genuine offers,” Mahboubi said, noting Ottawa scrapped job-offer points in 2025 amid concerns about the buying and selling of LMIAs. She added that Ottawa lacks the data to tell whether current LMIA-exempt foreign workers are “complementing Canadian workers or putting pressure on wages and job prospects.”

However, Mahboubi, through her research, believes Canada inviting more highly educated immigrants in the past to live and work here has almost always been a net gain for Canadians….

Source: Carney government’s immigration overhaul risks pushing Canadian wages down

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