MINDFUL A es ; Those planning to celebrate the holidays this year are urged not to go hog wild - _ _It'sawonderful he . a dio 58 alumni star in holiday classic P4 DAVID COOPER submitted photo It’s a Wonderful Life, a classic Christmas film, is returning to Vancouver as a play at Granville Island Stage. Canada won't meet refugee deadline Just 40 per cent of promised refugee intake will be attained this year By JAKE COSTELLO Ihe Canadian Government will not meet their target of settling 25,000 Syrian Ref- ugees by the end of the year. In a press conference Tuesday, Minis- ter of Health Jane Philpott, chair of the ad hoc Committee on Refugees, said that 10,000 refu- gees would be resettled across Canada by the end of the year, with another 15,000 before March 2016. This is a setback from a Liberal Party cam- paign pledge to resettle 25,000 refugees by the end of the year. Niall Christie, middle eastern history in- structor at Langara College, said he thinks the plan to delay is entirely sensible. “Tt’s important to do this right, and that does include making sure you’ve conducted all the various screenings and things that need to be done.” In the same conference Public Safety Minis- ter Ralph Goodale insisted that the recent at- tacks in Paris was not a factor in the delay, and that proper screening was always at the fore- front of this plan. “Bearing in mind that our government has barely been in office a month, It’s good progress,” said Goodale. Christie disagrees. “Although they’re not necessarily admitting to it, I do think the Paris attacks may have had an impact,” he said, add- ing that there is likely a desire to slow down the screening process. Langara political science instructor Peter Prontzos said that he was pleasantly surprised by the announcement, even though they are delaying their target dates. “It’s such a re- freshing change from the Harper regime,” he said, citing the hostility towards refugees that the Conservatives displayed through the Bar- baric Cultural Practices Act. “The more people, say in the Middle East, hear about what Canada is doing ... that might go some way to reducing the anti-Western hos- tility that groups like ISIS are trying to fan.” B.C. receives failing grade for poor kids One in five children living in poverty in province, ac- cording to new report By SEYEDMOSTAFA RAZIEI struggles to provide basic neces- sities for her son. This is a situa- tion all too common for B.C. parents, according to a new report. McKay’s son — approaching his sec- ond birthday — is among the one in five children living in poverty in the province. The statistics for poor chil- dren of single parents are even more dire — 50 per cent, according to the 2015 Child Poverty B.C. Report Card re- leased on Tuesday by First Call B.C. Child and Youth Advocacy coalition. “T have a mere $390 a month to pro- vide for my son and after paying my subsidized rent,” McKay said at the conference for the release of the re- port. “After paying my groceries each week, I do not have any money left for clothes, vacation or activities.” The number of poor children in B.C. — 167,810 — has hardly changed from what First Call reported two decades ago. This can be blamed on B.C. being the only province in Canada without a provincial poverty reduction strategy, according to Adrienne Montani, First Call’s provincial coordinator. “Over a decade, the number (of chil- dren living in poverty) has not changed very much,” she said. “Government seems to think that children can wait until something else happens, but if you do not make it happen, it is not go- ing to happen.” Even families with parents who work full-time are still living in pover- ty, according to Scott Graham, associ- ate executive director at the Social Planning and Research Council of B.C.. Graham suggested the province raise the minimum wage to $15 per hour, saying that would help working families pull out of poverty. Aer: McKay, a single mother, Local businesses reap benefits of low Canadian buck Hurting dollar keeps local consumers from shopping across the border By KATHRYN WU beneficial for Canadian business- es on Black Friday, according to Tourism Vancouver. Amber Sessions from Tourism Van- couver said that tourism is expected to exceed nine million visitations in 2015 —arecord breaking high. Black Friday is a tourism opportunity for Vancouver, given Canada’s current weak loonie. Aes: Canadian dollar may be i) “Shopping we know is an inspiration to come to Vancouver. Certainly for people who are across the border but maybe not in an urban metropolis like Seattle, for example,” said Sessions. “Any time you get a long weekend like Thanksgiving, that would create an opportunity for an American citizen to come to Vancouver,” said Sessions. Clare Mason, the manager of corpo- rate communications at Destination British Columbia, said in an email that statistics show visits to B.C. overall have also increased this year in com- parison to 2014. Sara Park, the marketing manger of Pacific Centre said the weak loonie could keep more locals from going down south. “T think that definitely locals will be shopping Black Friday here, and I think that we will probably have a lot of peo- ple staying in Canada, not crossing the border,” Park said. According to Park, Black Friday traf- fic has historically been high in Van- couver. “Last year, we had an increase of ap- proximately 18 per cent in traffic,” Park said. Malls throughout the Lower Main- land are extending opening hours on Friday. Nov. 27 for Black Friday shop- pers. JOE FRESH JASON HAMILTON photo Retailors have started seasonal sales.