Last week, the United Kingdom released an orientation manual for migrants. Among the sage pieces of advice it offered to readers were “never use threat, force or pressure to make someone have sex” and “women can … choose who they marry.”
“If you have sex with someone without their consent, this is called rape,” counselled the manual. “Rape is a serious crime in the UK. You could go to prison, lose your support and accommodation, and it will affect your asylum claim.” Other topics covered included domestic violence and respect for others in public. It’s a quick nine pages. Indeed, Canada could probably make use of such a leaflet.
Going by the stream of migrant violence news that the U.K. has emitted for years now, the document is overdue. It’s far too common to hear of shocking rapes perpetrated by migrants against vulnerable men , women , teens and even children in parks , wooded areas , beach toilets , rental units . And the problems extend beyond rape: there appear to be basic deficiencies in public etiquette from the migrant cross-section of society. Inappropriate loitering near primary schools has been a reported problem, incestuous cousin marriage (and the insistence that it’s fine) is a growing problem, as is dishonesty when interacting with public systems, as is perpetual unemployment and receipt of welfare.
A few printed handouts aren’t going to solve all of these problems, but they at least provide some validation to those who have been assured otherwise for years. A “please don’t rape” guide at least provides an official acknowledgement that perhaps the relentless stream of headlines about the latest ravaging in X county and sentencing in Y city amount to a pattern of some sort.
But what about in Canada? Well, we don’t have much for official orientation materials. I asked Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada whether we have anything like a “don’t rape” pamphlet, or perhaps a guide advising newcomers not to dump garbage in ditches. No such thing, is the official answer. Instead, Canada shunts the responsibility of orientation onto settlement services, at a cost of nearly $1 billion in 2026-27.
“All permanent residents and protected persons are eligible for IRCC-funded settlement services,” which, said the spokesperson, “help them integrate and build a successful life in Canada as quickly as possible and include information on rights and freedoms of individuals according to Canadian law, understanding of Canadian values, as well as their responsibilities and obligations.”
We’re similar to the U.K. in experiencing a migration at a scale unseen in recent memory, and this has come with its share of friction. Our schools now struggle to keep up with an unmanageable quantity of children who can’t speak or are learning English. The government circulates marriage fraud warnings — which have been denounced by newcomers writing in the Globe and Mail for being too uninclusive of other cultures’ transactional views of matrimony.
Organized crime is a growing problem as international crime groups move to exploit our porous border and inadequate immigration screening . The trucking industry has become known for corner-cutting and killing other drivers on the road — and an influx of foreign drivers seems to be part of the equation.
The federal government has washed itself of the responsibility for integration by shunting it off to third parties and calling it a day. While there isn’t anything wrong in working with partners, the feds are clearly happy to use them as an excuse to not communicate clear standards of conduct visible to the entire public. By leaving the bar-setting exercise to settlement service providers, the feds also escape the awkward position of having to explain why they’re bringing in people who need an explainer to not rape children.
Alas, not all can be hidden. The feds sponsored a “Pre-Departure Guide for Newcomers to Canada,” published in 2025, which is, in a way, even less flattering to the administration responsible than the British guide. It focuses predominantly on the rights of the newcomer, rather than the responsibilities. It dedicates more space to educating the reader about Canada’s openness to people switching genders than it does to the basic rules of consent.
“We are usually told by a doctor or our parents that we are male or female based on our appearance and how our bodies are formed,” it unironically instructs its pupils, as if the two biological sexes are as silly as the four humours.
A small part of the nearly 200-page workbook explains some common public behaviours in Canada and asks the reader to consider whether this will be new to them. These include: “lining up,” “making eye contact” and “using underarm deodorant.” Urinating and littering in public, it adds, are considered unacceptable.
Then, it makes a quick detour into crime. A worksheet is presented in which one must sort different crimes by punishment. Carrying a firearm without a permit comes with jail, you’re supposed to learn. Unwanted sexual touching or remarks come with either jail or a fine. Other “jail” entries include bribery, polygamy, female genital mutilation, as well as “Making, sharing or owning photos of naked children,” “Forcing others into marriage,” and “Having sex with children.”
Further on, the workbook presents a family violence matching exercise, where the reader is to draw a line from images of stick-figures abusing each other in some fashion to the written description of the act, the worst being “Killing a family member as a way to save a family’s honour.”
Elsewhere, it gently nudges newcomers to get jobs rather than rely on Canada Child Benefit payouts.
It’s a bare-bones set of standards that is troublingly indirect and away from public view. We’d be much better served by having it written right out on the Government of Canada website, which carries a little more authority than some PDF. Even more, we’d benefit from the civic discourse that would come with.
National Post
