Latest census release shows Halton is keeping up with the increase in diversity across Canada

The latest information released by Statistics Canada on April 2 provides statistics on ethnic origin and visible minorities collected from residents of Canada in May, 2006. The census figures show that Halton’s diversity continues to grow on par with the trend across the country. The latest information from the 2006 census shows 16.2 per cent of the population of Canada identified themselves as a visible minority while in Halton, the percentage is 17.8 per cent.

As part of the Halton Region 2007-2010 Strategic Plan, the Region committed to strengthening equitable access to programs and services for Halton’s diverse community, and to reducing barriers to services for newcomers.

In the past year, Halton has implemented two new three-digit non-emergency telephone numbers that are particularly beneficial to people new to the area, or people who face language barriers. 211 is an information and referral service which helps people find community services. 311 is a direct access line to Halton government services, which includes Halton Region, the Local Municipalities, the Halton District and Halton Catholic District School Boards, and the Halton Regional Police Service.

Both 211 and 311 services have been implemented to embrace multiple languages and multiple access technologies including TTY, or text telephone, for deafened, hard of hearing or hearing-impaired individuals. Callers have access to telephone translators in 150 languages.

Other Halton characteristics from the census show that:

• The number of people who identify themselves as visible minorities has increased by 24,810 since 2001, to a current population of 57,360.
• The largest visible minority population is South Asian with an increase of 8,455 people between 2001 and 2006, followed by Chinese which increased by 3,490.
• The largest percentage increase was in Latin Americans who increased in number from 1,550 to 3,760.

The census figures released on April 2 are part of a series of broad community profiles released by Statistics Canada over two to three years. As data from the 2006 census continues to be released, Halton Region will be conducting more detailed analysis. Further information may be directly obtained from the Statistics Canada website at www.statcan.ca.

The Regional Municipality of Halton serves more than 430,000 residents in the City of Burlington, the Town of Halton Hills, the Town of Milton, and the Town of Oakville. Halton Region is committed to meeting the needs of its residents through the delivery of cost-effective, quality programs and services, including water and wastewater; Regional roads and planning; emergency medical services; waste management; public health; Ontario Works (formerly social assistance); children’s and seniors’ services; social/non-profit housing; heritage programs; emergency management and business development. For more information, visit Halton Region’s website at

www.halton.ca

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