REGINA — Saskatchewan Premier Brad Wall says the province will establish a refugee settlement centre to co-ordinate the arrival of Syrian refugees into the province.
The announcement comes just days after Wall said the federal government should suspend its plan to bring in 25,000 Syrian refugees by year's end because of safety concerns.
The premier says it's important to ensure that refugees who come to Saskatchewan make a successful transition to life in Canada.
He still says the deadline is not good public policy.
Wall says he remains concerned that a rushed political deadline could compromise the success of the refugee resettlement effort.
The premier says many questions remain unanswered about the federal government's resettlement plan, but the province needs to be ready to welcome the refugees whenever they start to arrive.
"We need to take our time and get this right," Wall said Thursday.
"We need to get the safety and security outcomes right at the front of this process and get the resettlement outcomes right at the back end of this process. I'm not sure that's possible by Dec. 31, but regardless of the timeline, we will make every effort to make it work."
