Canada welcomed 437,180 immigrants in 2022 (StatCan). According to a recent Bloomberg report: (i) Canada experienced the fastest growth in its population since 1957 – rising 2.9% for the 12-month period ending July 1, 2023. (ii) Non-permanent residents in Canada grew by 46%, which represents the largest jump in the country’s history (Bloomberg). Justin Trudeau’s minority government is transforming Canada’s social infrastructure at a staggering pace. The central question I intend to address in this briefing is: Are these numbers sustainable for a country that desperately needs significant investment and progress in its housing, infrastructure, healthcare, and education system?
Across the country, Canadians are suffering with an unprecedented rise in the cost of living, and a lack of housing affordability. Immigration being the antecedent of economic progress, Canada finds itself in a formidable predicament of balancing the interest of its citizens while ensuring a growing population. This briefing provides facts, figures, opinions, and analysis for you to form a view about Canada’s immigration policy.
Canada welcomed over 800,000 students in 2022: of which, Ontario welcomed 411,985 students (Source: PIE News). The 800K intake represents an annual increase of 33%. Students bring skilled labor to the country, however, they also make use of the country’s infrastructure as it relates to healthcare, roads, and housing. A Fraser Institute study found that Canadians are waiting longer than ever to see a doctor: at 27.4 weeks (after a family doctor referral) – that figure was 9.3 weeks in 1993 (National Post). Universities in provinces like Ontario have fundamentally reshaped their student bodies with a rising populace of international students who are charged exorbitant tuition fees of circa $36,100 on average per year for an undergraduate degree (EduCanada); versus an Ontario resident at $7,920 per year for the same degree (Statista). While universities have consistently grown their student bodies along with their endowments; they have contributed very little to some of the pressing problems Canadian provinces face with a rising population – case in point: Housing! In fact, there is no federal requirement nor regulation for universities or colleges to ensure adequate housing for their student body. Should universities and colleges pitch in to alleviate the cost of living and housing crisis that overshadows Canada?
The province of Ontario welcomed 184,725 new permanent residents in 2022 (Immigration). While Canada welcomed over 800,000 students in 2022, Ontario took in 411,985 of that number (PIE News). Permanent residents coupled with students represent nearly 600,000 newcomers in Ontario alone (a staggering 596,710 to be exact). Ontario’s population reached 15,500,632 on April 1, 2023 (Ontario.ca). And: 596,710 divided by 15,500,632 = 3.84%. Staggering eh! Make no mistake, international students contributed more than $20 billion to the Canadian economy and supported more than 218,000 jobs in 2018 alone (University Affairs) – those numbers are even higher as at 2023! Recruiting international students to study in Canada is a major business with Canadian universities purported to be paying up to 20% of the student’s tuition fee as a ‘success fee’ to immigration consultants/agents. With exorbitant rents and a lack of housing availability, students are living in diabolical conditions and working as gig economy workers to make a living while being robbed of the chance to become the skilled workforce of Canada they aspire to be. The system is rigged to benefit Canadian universities without proper oversight or regulatory framework. A startling Globe and Mail investigation uncovered the murky world of recruitment consultants who exploited international students by luring them into accepting expensive programs at colleges and universities with a promise of a well paid job upon graduation. The reality however was very different: many students ended up working at fast food chains beyond their legal 20 hour limit/week so they could afford to pay for rent and food; coincidentally diminishing their chances of securing employment in their chosen profession. The Globe and Mail pointed to a supposed loophole exploited my immigration consultants to place international students in expensive college programs. Students found themselves working odd jobs to pay their way through school to ultimately secure permanent residency status without achieving the economic promise they signed up for (Globe and Mail). This does not sound like the Canada I grew up in. I attended University of Toronto, and subsequently McGill for my undergraduate studies, and in the early 2000s, these universities also welcomed students from around the world who didn’t struggle like students in 2023 in finding housing due to a lack of affordability and availability. We will be talking about Sean Fraser shortly.
According to CIBC, Canada underestimated its non-permanent resident count by nearly 1 million between 2017 – 2022 (Yahoo Finance). Nearly 750,000 non-permanent residents overstayed their visa during this period in Canada. The non-permanent resident category includes students. What this means is that a great majority of students will actually end up settling in Canada: so the immigration number alone is not accurate when you refer to “newcomers” in provinces like Ontario. The underestimation of this category of residents in Canada points to the current government’s lack of oversight and control. Canada needs to grow its population at a steady pace, but the country must implement a responsible immigration policy that ensures that skilled workers are moving into the country and that our infrastructure can properly support newcomers as well as current residents.
Is the Canadian dream at risk? With one of the world’s greatest land mass, strong rule of law, healthy economy, free healthcare, and high education standards, the economic promise and a chance to start afresh is the Canadian dream. But to some analysts, the reality is very different. For the first time, “Canadians suspect their children will be poorer than they are“. The negative sentiment is compounded by a rising number of young Canadians and recent immigrants “wishing they weren’t Canadian” (National Post). Meanwhile, the Trudeau government set a firm target of welcoming 500,000 newcomers to the country by 2025. Pierre Poilievre, the leader of the opposition, questioned the effectiveness of the immigration system. In a detailed critique of the Trudeau government, the conservative party leader called Trudeau’s former immigration minister Sean Fraser the “worst immigration minister in Canadian history”. Poilievre called out Fraser for neglecting refugee claimants who ended up sleeping on Toronto’s streets, and also referenced the growing number of international students committing suicide and relying on food banks. A further blow to Minister Fraser’s record is the exploitation of international students by dodgy immigration consultants who exploited Canada’s vulnerable student visa application system by creating forged acceptance letters that duped international students into entering Canada to study, while paying hefty fees – ultimately to face deportation (CBC). Sean Fraser is now serving as Canada’s housing minister after Trudeau’s recent cabinet shuffle. Housing availability and affordability is a major issue for Canadians: Is Sean Fraser the right man for the job? His record as immigration minister screams a resounding No! In his comments, the Conservative Party leader, Pierre Poilievre, promised greater availability of housing and healthcare so that “when people come here (Canada) they have a roof overhead and care when they need it” (National Post). There is no doubt that Canada needs newcomers and skilled workers to fill the gaps to propel the country’s economy; but equally, the country’s immigration system needs to ensure its achieving exactly that. Ultimately what we need in Canada is responsible immigration that helps us create a skilled workforce and productive members of society who are supported by our housing, heath-care, and transportation infrastructure.
Federal Politics made Canada’s housing crisis inevitable. In 2023, TD Bank warned that “continuing with a high-growth immigration strategy could widen the housing shortfall by about a half-million units within just two years.” National Bank amplified TD’s warning by stating that “the federal government’s decision to open the immigration floodgates during the most aggressive monetary tightening cycle in a generation has created a record imbalance between housing and demand.” BMO also chimed in by stating that immigration flows to help labour supply added to the housing demand that the government is desperately trying to meet. Trudeau fought back by arguing that students and immigrants must not be blamed for Canada’s housing crisis (Toronto Sun). Justin Trudeau is absolutely right in making that statement. It is indeed the government that ought to take the blame for colossally failing to ensure whether Canadian provinces were equipped with sufficient infrastructure to support the rising number of newcomers. Lacking coherence, Trudeau even made a public statement ridding the federal government of responsibility as it relates to Canada’s housing crisis (CBC). There is no denying of Canada’s record low birth rate at circa 1.33 as at 2022. Lack of affordability and housing served as a major deterrents for Canadians choosing to have less or no children. We must look at our country from a holistic lens: How did we get here? Why did birth rates drop so low? How did housing become so unaffordable and unattainable? How is it that we were better off in 2008 – when the world was crumbling in the abyss of a financial cataclysm, Canada stood strong. So strong that the Bank of England scooped up our economic manager (exit Mark Carney). Given the economic record of our current government, I am afraid the Bank of England will look the other way. Tish tosh!
Concluding Remarks
I have been quizzing friends and colleagues about Canada’s socioeconomic framework. It is fascinating that in a world riddled with news, information, and data, we can easily get lost in the details. In the background, Canada is silently going through a socioeconomic shift that is seismic. Never in the country’s history, has such change ensued at such a staggering scale and pace than under the minority government of the Trudeau liberals. If we rely on our governments to work in the background without proper checks and balances we will find ourselves in unforeseen crisis. Governments must be held accountable for their actions and called out for inaction and negligence that costs Canadian taxpayers their livelihoods. Canada is handsomely meeting its immigration numbers, but not the achievement of a highly skilled workforce it desires. This is a problem, and if you are Canadian, please pay attention.
References: StatsCan, Bloomberg, Globe and Mail, PIE News, Statista, Ontario.ca, Yahoo Finance, National Post, CBC, Toronto Sun, Fraser Institute, BBC, and CTV News. Please note that this briefing contains paraphrased summaries and attributes the original content to the news sources. Readers are encouraged to visit the links to access the full article in its original form for a thorough and complete view. You may need to subscribe to the news agency and source for access. Photo Credit: (New Canadians). This blog entry aggregates news and research articles, and may contain thoughts and summaries by the author that may be inaccurate, false, or out of date.