No refugees will be processed at CFB Goose Bay, Yvonne Jones says

Labrador MP Yvonne Jones, who had been leading the charge to use facilities at 5 Wing Goose Bay to process Syrian refugees, says that will no longer be necessary in light of the federal government decision. 

• Justin Trudeau justifies refugee delay, says Liberals want it 'done right'
• Make 5 Wing Goose Bay a processing centre for Syrian refugees, says Yvonne Jones

The federal government announced its updated plan for bringing Syrian refugees in to the country on Tuesday, delaying its target of bringing 25,000 refugees to Canada by year's end. 

As well, officials are planning to put refugees through bases in Ontario and Quebec, with no immediate plans to use bases in other provinces. 

Only 10,000 refugees will now arrive by Dec. 31, with the rest arriving by March 2016. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Tuesday it's more important to "make sure it's done right."

Jones was lobbying government to process as many as 1,000 Syrian refugees for entry in to Canada through 5 Wing Goose Bay.

She said the support of families and organizations, as well as decreased numbers and screening changes, no longer made it necessary to use Canadian military resources to process refugees within the country.

"There's so many municipalities across Canada, and so many Canadian families that have reached out to take Syrian refugees, that at this stage we're not going to have to use the military bases and the facilities," she said Wednesday while speaking on CBC's Labrador Morning.
 
The processing, screening, any required medical treatment and CSIS background checks will now be done in UN refugee camps in other countries before refugees arrive in the country. 

Jones happy with federal plan

Jones said she's still happy about the government's plan, even though 5 Wing Goose Bay not being included in the process. 

"I did offer up 5 Wing Goose Bay, as I thought it was only right to do being a military base, if we were going to be processing and screening Syrian refugees in Canada," she said.

Jones said Syrian refugees will arrive through Montreal and Toronto before disbursing to their new homes and communities.

She added that any negative sentiment toward refugees was minor and only expressed by a few people through social media. She praised Newfoundlanders and Labradorians for their efforts and encouraged them to do even more to aid refugees.

"There [are] thousands of people in this province who have already stepped up to provide support and services, and that includes Labrador." 

Jones said that as the numbers of incoming refugees increase, the situation may change, but for right now the base will not be used to process or accommodate Syrian refugees.