Traditionally perceived as a welcoming land for immigrants, Canada announced this Thursday, October 25, a “considerable” reduction of 21% in the quota of permanent residents that it will welcome starting next year, reflecting a change of course in the face of public opinion. public. increasingly reluctant to immigration.
“Immigration is essential for Canada’s future, but it must be controlled and sustainable,” said Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, stressing that this reduction “will cause a pause in population growth over the next two years.”
This measure comes after several rounds of restrictions aimed at containing record levels of immigration (98% growth in 2023), which brought the number of inhabitants to more than 41 million at the beginning of the year, up from around 35 million ten years ago.
“Stabilize our population growth”
The Immigration Department had previously announced that it planned to allow 500,000 new permanent residents to settle in the country in 2025 and 2026. The new figures announced on Thursday were revised downwards: 395,000 next year and 380,000 by 2026. That of 2027 is set at 365,000.
The objective is “to stabilize our population growth, to give all levels of government time to catch up and make the necessary investments in health, housing and social services,” said the Prime Minister.
“This plan is probably the first of its kind so far,” added Immigration Minister Marc Miller, stressing that it responds to “a lot of criticism” received in the past.
According to an Abacus Data poll from early October, one in two Canadians believes immigration harms the nation.
For the first time in a quarter of a century, 58% of Canadians believe there is too much immigration, an opinion that has strengthened considerably for the second year in a row, according to another survey by the Environics Institute.
radical turning point
The announcement marks a sea change for Canada, a country long known as a destination for immigrants, including economic immigrants from developing countries seeking better living conditions.
Just two years ago, Ottawa announced record goals for the coming years: 1.5 million new arrivals by 2025.
“In the tumultuous period following the pandemic, we failed to find the right balance between job needs and maintaining population growth,” the Canadian prime minister admitted on Thursday.
For his part, the Minister of Immigration insisted that this plan would help alleviate the real estate crisis currently affecting the country by reducing the number of new homes to be built.
“Immigrants are not responsible for the housing crisis, lack of employment, insufficient health care or other public services in Canada,” more than 120 civil society organizations reacted in an open letter.
They point out that the blame lies rather with “decades of federal and provincial policies that have underfunded and privatized public services.”
The opposition denounces an “admission of failure”
For the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, this reduction is “disappointing for businesses across the country,” which see immigration as a “key driver of economic growth and our only source of near-term workforce growth.”
Donald Trump, who made immigration a central issue of his US presidential campaign – including through misleading and inflammatory statements – also reacted to the announcement, stressing that “even Justin Trudeau wants to close Canada’s borders”, in reference to his own plan to regulate even more migrants at US borders.
In Canada, Conservative opposition leader Pierre Poilievre maintains that Justin Trudeau has “destroyed the immigration system” and that “today’s radical change is an admission of failure.”
With this announcement, Justin Trudeau, whose leadership is questioned by several members of his parliamentary group, seeks to respond even more to the demands of Canadians and show a change in his policy to improve his image.
According to the latest polls, he is almost 20 points behind his political opponent and only one in five Canadians wants him to run again in the next election. Almost half want him to resign immediately, according to an Abacus Data survey.
Source: BFM TV