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Disabled ex-pat an 'economic burden'

A British man whose Canadian work permit expired has been deported back to the UK after immigration officials decided that granting him permanent resident status would be .

36-year-old Chris Mason hasn't lived in the UK since he was a child, had many friends in Canada, and expressed no desire to return here. He lived in Greece before moving to Canada in 2001 to work as a long-haul truck driver. He became paraplegic after damaging his back on the job, and then was further injured in 2007 when hit by a taxi. This has left him unable to work, meaning that he was living on social assistance with an expired visa.

Canada has a reputation for being a tolerant country that is very open to disabled people, but their Immigration Act does contain a clause which says that anyone who might put undue economic burden on the social welfare system can be denied the right to live there. Canadian disability campaigners are now lobbying for the removal of this particular regulation, saying that it actually causes disabled people to be further stigmatized.

What do you think of the way the authorities acted in this case? Although Chris Mason's visa had expired, should immigration officials have shown more leniency and enabled him to stay in a country he had considered home for some eight years? Or is it entirely fair that a country of which Mr Mason is not a citizen, should continue to pay his welfare benefits. Tell us in the comments below.