QUEBEC - A spokesman for Quebec's employment minister says the provincial government will hand out welfare cheques to several thousand asylum seekers next week.
Simon Laboissonniere says an estimated 4,000 people will get money for the month of September.
The minimum basic monthly payment will be $623, while there will be an additional sum depending on the recipient's family status.
The three-day operation will take place at Montreal's Palais des congres convention centre, beginning next Wednesday.
Laboissonniere said it is easier to hand out the cheques in one place.
Once they have received the cheques, the asylum seekers will be asked to leave their temporary shelters and seek permanent accommodation.
