OTTAWA -- Interim Opposition leader Rona Ambrose says the effort underway to give asylum to 1,200 primarily Yazidi refugees by year end should help bolster people's confidence in government.

She says at a time where people are losing faith in democratic institutions, the ability of opposition and government to come together to do what was right for the Yazidis is proof the system can work.

Ambrose made the comments in an interview with The Canadian Press on the sidelines of a Conservative conference in Ottawa this weekend grappling with the question of populism and politics.

She says the fact that the opposition motion to bring Yazidis to Canada was adopted by the Liberals was proof government does listen to Canadians.

She called the failure of Canada to do more for the minority Kurdish sect in the past an oversight, but acknowledged refugee issues were not as much on her radar when the Conservatives were in government.

The previous Conservative government only resettled a handful of Yazidis under their refugee program that had targeted the resettlement of persecuted minority groups from the region.