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French Interior Minister Nicolas Sarkozy has announced that visa procedures for Algerians will be speeded up in 15 European countries.
Mr Sarkozy, seen as a front-runner for the right-centre party in next year's presidential election, was speaking on a visit to Algeria in mid-November. There are approximately one million voters of Algerian origin in France; many Algerians and their relatives stand to benefit greatly from such a policy change.
The Dutch parliament was holding crisis talks on 13 December after MPs passed a motion condemning its caretaker Immigration Minister for refusing to halt deportations of rejected asylum seekers until a new ruling coalition was formed.
Rita Verdonk, known as "Iron Rita" because of her crackdown on immigration in recent years, made no immediate comment but was expected to resign following last night's motion.
As of October, the quota of 1,110 permits for the Food Manufacturing (Meat) sector and the quota of 203 permits for the Food Manufacturing (Fish) sector have been reached. No further first applications for these sectors will be considered. The plan was to close the programme by 31 December or when all quotas were reached.
Millions of travelers will be able to leave their passports at home after European Union governments agreed at the beginning of this month to begin scrapping border controls for citizens of new entrants like Poland and Malta by the end of 2007.
The accord was an historic event for Europe, said Kari Rajamaki, the interior minister of Finland, which holds the rotating EU presidency. "We are preparing for a very significant enlargement" of the free movement of European citizens, Rajamaki said.
While not a new concept, a report released 11 December 2006 from researchers linked to the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the Bank of England, says that immigrants in the UK contribute very significantly to the health of the UK economy.
Ontario's Minister of Citizenship and Immigration Mike Colle announced a $600,000 investment to help adult immigrants receive language training that will be relevant to their skills and experience.
"Strong language skills are the imperative for newcomer success in the job market," Colle said at the Continuing Education School Board Administrators (CESBA) conference. "We're breaking down barriers for newcomers. This investment will enable school boards to re-focus language training on the workplace, to help newcomers land jobs that reflect their qualifications."