取消投资移民对安省影响甚微
Ontario finds continuing decline in business immigration
Nancy Jin 南茜
联邦保守党在其2014年财政预算案中宣布取消加国投资移民项目，关闭了曾令数百万的中国富豪们获得永久居民身份的移民大门。这一消息在加拿大的华人社区和商界引发强烈反响。
The federal government announced in its 2014 budget that it will no longer accept investor immigrant applications, putting an end to the program that has granted permanent resident status to thousands of Chinese rich elites. The announcement has sparked strong criticisms from Chinese Canadians as well as the business community in Canada.
根据加拿大移民部的数据，在2011年，中国成为加拿大最大的投资移民来源国（1250人），远远超越排名第二位的台湾（215人）。出于对中国的残酷现实的恐惧和担忧，包括从政局不稳到财产不保到空气和水所遭到严重污染，这些中国富豪们渴望离能举家迁移，到加拿大安家落户。
According to Immigration Canada, in 2011, China was the number one source country of investor immigrants to Canada (1250), far exceeding the second source country -- Taiwan (215). Resulting from fears and concerns over the tough reality in China – from political instability to financial insecurity to air and water pollution, these Chinese rich elites wish to make Canada the home for their families.
但是，由于数年来投资移民项目的申请延误和严重积压，该项目已几近瘫痪。在两年前，联邦政府曾一度暂停投资移民项目，此后又将该项目的投资金额要求提高了一倍，并将每年的新申请名额限制在700个。在2011年，700名申请人中有697名是来自中国。
However, the program has been broken for several years, with delays and enormous blacklog of files. Two years ago, the federal government suspended the program, and then reinstated it with double the financial requirements and a cap on new applications of just 700 a year. In 2011, 697 applicants out of 700 were from China.
许多人批评投资移民项目就是一个以现金购置签证的计划，并且对加拿大的经济发展贡献很小，联邦政府亦表示，通过该项目移民至加拿大的人与加国联系甚微，他们既不“投资”也不“移民”。
The program was criticized as cash-for-visa scheme that provided little benefit to the Canadian economy. According to the government, those who use the program have only “tenuous” ties to Canada, and they have neither “invested” nor “immigrated” to Canada.
联邦政府的这一举措引发了某些华裔社区领袖的强烈不满，并令人们对联邦政府将数百万中国富豪移民拒之门外的动机进行种种猜测。
The announcement has sparked criticism from some Chinese community leaders, and prompted speculations over the motives of the federal government’s decision to keep millions of Chinese rich elites out of the country.
投资移民查理·张（Charlie Zhang）在温哥华的Floata Seafood and Chinese餐厅向记者表示：“当我们结束在中国的生意，关闭在中国的工厂来到这里时，我们已经失去了很多，政府此举会让投资者感到前途迷茫，对投资不利。”
“When we close our business, our factory, in China and come here we have already lost a lot,” Charlie Zhang, an immigrant investors told reporters at the Floata Seafood and Chinese restaurant. “This is bad for investment… Uncertainty is bad for investment.”
还有一些人则认为联邦政府此举是出于政治动机。在温哥华开设了三家零售店，并且曾代表安省新民主党参加省选的社区积极分子姚永安（Gabriel Yiu）称，在他看来，联邦政府就是为了取悦保守党的基础选民。
Some saw political motives. “To me, it’s about pleasing the Conservative base,” said Gabriel Yiu, a community activist who has run provincially with the NDP and also runs three retail stores in Vancouver.
据温哥华移民律师兼政策分析家李克伦(Richard Kurland)称，许多中国富裕家庭购买了豪宅和豪车，送他们的儿女就读私立学校，而他们的消费行为正是加国各地的财政厅长所希望消费者之所为。
Many Chinese wealthy families purchased high-end homes and cars, and enrolled their son and daughter into private schools -- doing exactly what finance ministers across the country are hoping consumers start doing more of, according to Richard Kurland, a Vancouver-based immigration lawyer and policy analyst.
另一些反对者表示，吸引中国的富豪移民也是与中国建立经济联系的一条捷径，而将这些富豪移民拒之门外，会令加拿大输掉先机。
Opponents argue that poaching China’s wealthy is also a short-cut to establishing economic ties with China, and Canada will lose out at its own game by rejecting the rich newcomers.
加拿大国家银行投资移民项目主管勒布朗称：“加拿大是一个以出口为主导的资源国家，这些移民加拿大的富人家庭可有助于加拿大与世界各地广泛联系，建立金色桥梁。”
“Canada being a resource-rich country dominated by exports, the beauty of this is that you’re creating golden bridges throughout the world with these wealthy families coming into Canada,” said Louis Leblanc, head of immigrant investor programs at National Bank Financial.
“一个可行的商业移民渠道将有利于安省的经济发展，开拓展商机，并能更好地吸引外国投资，”安省经济发展和创新厅公关部高级官员杜吉德在发给《大中报》的一封电子邮件中称。但“安省对近年来持续出现的包括投资者和企业家在内的商业移民数额持续下降深感担忧。”
A viable channel for business immigration will benefit the Ontario economically -- from expanding business opportunities to better accessing foreign investments, says Brigitte Marleau, senior communication officer of Ministry of Economic Development, Trade and EmploymentMinistry of Research and Innovation in an email to Chinese News. However, “Ontario has concerns over the continued decline of viable streams for business immigration, which consists primarily of entrepreneurs and investors.”
按照投资移民项目，渥京会将收到的投资分配给包括安省在内的各个省份。迄今为止，渥京已向安省分拨$11.9亿元投资基金。在2010年，该移民项目的总收入为$ 6.8亿元，其中有40%进入了安省，但安省政府似乎并没有从中获益。
Under the program, Ottawa distributes the received investments to participating provinces including Ontario. So far the province has received a total $1.19 billion from Ottawa. In 2010, 40% of $ 680 million generated totally went to Ontario, but the Ontario government seems to have least benefited from it.
但据Financial Post报道，安省的投资基金使用情况似乎遭到了康尼的强烈批评。
The province seems to have received fierce criticism from Jason Kenny for not better using the investment fund, according an article in Financial Post.
移民部长康尼在2011年接受媒体采访时称：“有些省份并没有真正使用这笔资金，而只是将其保管了五年。”
“Some of the provinces aren’t really distributing it, they just hold it for five years,” Citizenship and Immigration Minister Jason Kenney said in a media interview in 2011.
康尼称：“有时候他们甚至都不愿意表示自己会有所行动。我认为安省对$8000多万投资移民基金无动于衷，他们甚至都没有任何示意考虑过这些资金的特殊专项用途。”
“Sometimes, they don’t even pretend to do anything with it. I think Ontario’s sitting on $80-million or more of investor immigrant funds. They haven’t even set up the pretense of a dedicated purpose for those funds,” he said.
康尼还称安省对这些投资基金的使用甚微，仅仅抵消这些资金五年的利息成本。
Kenny called the province’s use of the funds “notional,” merely “offsetting their interest costs for five years for that money.”
既然安省并未认真使用过这笔资金，那么取消该计划对安省也不会有太大影响。但据杜吉德称，确切的影响程度尚不可知。
That might explain why the province finds continuing decline in business immigration. It is unsurprising that scraping the program may have little impact on the province. However, Marleau told Chinese News that the exact impact has yet to be known.
他写道：“安省将会继续关注这个问题，并与联邦政府紧密合作，以了解此举将会对安省造成的影响。”
“The province will continue to monitor this issue and work closely with Ottawa to understand “how the announcement will affect Ontario,” he wrote.