In February of 1946 the Netherlands Emigration Foundation was created. The goal of this organisation was to supervise the screening and selection of potential Dutch immigrants. The Canadian government, in turn, would interview these immigrants and submit them to medical examinations. The Dutch were considered 'preferred' immigrants by the Canadian government because they had a long and positive history as immigrants to Canada. Canadians thought of the Dutch as hard-working people with religious, social, political, and economic institutions similar to those of the English-speaking majority. The Dutch assimilated quickly and provided a ready labour source for Canada's agricultural and industrial industries. Between 1947 and 1970, almost 185,000 Dutch immigrants entered Canada.