Pope Leo heads to Canary Islands to highlight perilous journeys of migrants

The one-off move has been criticised by Spain's opposition. The conservative Popular Party has condemned an "irresponsible" move that goes against all EU Immigration policies. And the far-right Vox party has called it an "invasion" that would attract more migrants to the country and cause the "collapse of the health service, housing and security".For the Socialist government, though, the move is a mix of the humanitarian, pragmatic and political: with an ageing, shrinking population it needs more workers – like all of Europe."We couldn't find local people who wanted to work with us," said Diana del Molino Rodriguez at the Domingo Alonso Group workshop in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria.Unable to recruit bodywork painters or panel beaters, the car firm hooked up with the local government to hire young migrants once they turn 18 and leave state care.Molino Rodriguez says they faced fierce criticism initially, with social media comments about people "stealing" Spanish jobs: "It was a really hard thing to do because Immigration was not something seen as positive. Nobody was looking at migrants like persons."Her firm now has around 30 people on its books, including 19-year-old Tiene Lama, who says he's able to send several hundred euros each month back to his family in Ivory Coast.Dozens of companies, including big hotel chains on the holiday islands, have now signed up to the scheme.