From the prohibitive Immigration Act of 1906 to Robert Borden's declaration in 1908 that the Conservative Party (which would become the government in 1911) 'stands for a white Canada', to the Immigration Act of 1910, the sentiment was clear (Walker, 1984, p. 9). The latter Act, described as 'restricted, exclusive, and selective', prohibited the entry of immigrants who belonged to 'any race deemed unsuitable to the climate or requirements of Canada, or of immigrants of any specified class, occupation or character' and was implemented by 'exclusion officers' (Calliste, 1993-1994; Winks, 2000, p. 307). This general sentiment was repeated by Canadian Prime Minister Mackenzie King, who declared in 1947 that the people of Canada did 'not wish, as a result of mass immigration, to make a fundamental alteration in the character of [their] population' (Winks, 2000, p. 435). Not surprisingly then, the Immigration Act of 1952 allowed for the exclusion of persons 'for reasons of nationality, citizenship, ethnic group and geographical area of origin' (Walker, 1984, p. 10). It was only in 1962 that Canada formally ended the preferential treatment of prospective white immigrants and began to emphasize educational achievement and professional skills as a basis for (selective) immigration.