Immigration Minister Ahmed Hussen said the federal government is launching new programs to protect migrant workers from employer and family abuse.

Federal officials say the surge is due in part to an increase in international tourism in Canada — something the federal government has been trying hard to achieve.

Pakistan's High Commission in Ottawa has urged federal government officials to address what its spokesman calls a "very high" visa rejection rate for the Asian country's students.

Immigration Minister Ahmed Hussen is defending new measures aimed at cracking down on unscrupulous immigration consultants, rejecting an all-party committee's call that they be brought under government regulation.

"Caregivers provide care to families in Canada that need it, and it's time for Canada to care for them in return," said Immigration Minister Ahmed Hussen.

On average, the Liberals have reunited fewer families under the parents-and-grandparents program than the previous Tory government, stats show.

The vast majority of these newcomers will come under economic programs designed to address skills shortages and gaps in the labour market.

Ahmed Hussen, the federal minister of immigration, refugees and citizenship, told a news conference today in Halifax that he's "very concerned" by the comments made by Ford and Lisa MacLeod, the provincial cabinet minister responsible for immigration.

Hussen says the government understands how important it is to reunite couples and it also makes for a stronger country. 

“The current excessive demand provision policy simply does not align with our country’s values on the inclusion of persons with disabilities,” Canada's immigration minister said.