Focus Canada: More than half of Canadians think there is too much immigration, poll finds

2025/10/17 Leave a comment

The good news is that for most questions, the decline in support has largely bottomed out. Encouraging that concerns revolve more around immigration program mismanagement and impact on housing, healthcare etc rather than values albeit latter along with refugees and crime remain issues. Partisan differences have increased significantly, likely reflecting Conservative highlighting immigration and citizenship issues and possible influence of USA debates:

A majority of Canadians say there is too much immigration to this country, a new poll suggests, but the percentage of people who believe this has remained stable after a sharp rise over two previous years.

The poll, which was conducted by the Environics Institute for Survey Research in partnership with other groups, also found a widening partisan divide among respondents. Supporters of the federal Conservatives are much more likely to be critical of immigration levels compared with people who support the Liberals or New Democrats.

The survey interviewed 2,004 Canadians via telephone (landline and cellphone) between Sept. 8 and 21. The margin of error for this sample size is plus or minus 2.2 percentage points, 19 times out of 20. The survey has been conducted over decades using broad questions to track Canadians’ feelings about immigration.

Fifty-six per cent of respondents said they agreed with the statement, “Overall, there is too much immigration to Canada,” while 38 per cent said they disagreed with it. …

Source: More than half of Canadians think there is too much immigration, poll finds

Survey link: Canadian public opinion about the Immigration & Refugees

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Atlantic Canada sees sharp decline in international student enrolment

2025/10/17 Leave a comment

As largely expected, as is the sharpest drop at Cape Breton University where the majority of all students were international:

International student enrolment is down sharply at universities in Atlantic Canada this year as the federal government’s cap on the number of study permits it will process takes a toll on the postsecondary sector.

International enrolment is down nearly 28 per cent at universities in Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland, according to a preliminary survey of enrolment released Wednesday by the Association of Atlantic Universities.

The AAU said in a release that the international student numbers have been “badly eroded” by federal policies that have affected the recruitment of students. 

International student tuition became an important source of funding to universities and colleges across the country over the past decade. The reduction in international students is having a financial impact at individual schools, in some cases resulting in revenue losses of millions of dollars….

Source: Atlantic Canada sees sharp decline in international student enrolment

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Trump Considers Overhaul of Refugee System That Would Favor White People

2025/10/16 Leave a comment

“Give me your privileged, your rich, / Your huddled elite yearning to breathe free…”,

The Trump administration is considering a radical overhaul of the U.S. refugee system that would slash the program to its bare bones while giving preference to English speakers, white South Africans and Europeans who oppose migration, according to documents obtained by The New York Times.

The proposals, some of which already have gone into effect, would transform a decades-old program aimed at helping the world’s most desperate people into one that conforms to Mr. Trump’s vision of immigration — which is to help mostly white people who say they are being persecuted while keeping the vast majority of other people out.

The plans were presented to the White House in April and July by officials in the State and Homeland Security Departments after President Trump directed federal agencies to study whether refugee resettlement was in the interest of the United States. Mr. Trump had suspended refugee admissions on his first day in office and solicited the proposals about how and whether the administration should continue the program.

Trump administration officials have not ruled out any of the ideas, according to people familiar with the planning, although there is no set timetable for approving or rejecting the ideas. The officials spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the confidential plans….

Source: Trump Considers Overhaul of Refugee System That Would Favor White People

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Picard: Does it matter where our future doctors attended high school? Doug Ford seems to think so

2025/10/15 Leave a comment

Good analysis on the substance although suspect this works politically:

…The new residency-application criterium is a whole different kettle of fish. Requiring the completion of two years of high school in the province is a ridiculous metric. Many Ontarians who did not study high school in the province still have deep and meaningful ties to Ontario and to Canada. They should not be treated as second-class citizens.

Besides, IMGs are a cornerstone of medicine in Canada. Almost one-quarter of our doctors were born elsewhere, and they are the only thing keeping the health system from collapsing entirely in rural and remote regions. It makes no sense to have immigration policies that actively invite medical professionals, only to see provinces like Ontario put up discriminatory barriers once they’ve arrived. 

Positions in medical residency, and medicine more generally, should be allocated based on merit, not postal code. Who cares where a doctor did high school? 

Mr. Ford should be ashamed. In an apparent bid to satisfy a small cadre of well-connected medical students wealthy enough to study abroad, Ontario is leaving thousands of other internationally trained physicians by the side of the road. 

Source: Does it matter where our future doctors attended high school? Doug Ford seems to think so

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Maddeaux | Mark Carney hopes to lure tech workers to Canada. One problem: Canada is already struggling to keep and attract talent

2025/10/15 Leave a comment

Reminder not so easy:

Domestic STEM talent is fleeing, too. A 2023 study of STEM graduates from the classes of 2015 and 2016 at the University of Toronto, University of Waterloo and University of British Columbia found two-thirds of them working in the U.S. Similarly, a 2020 survey of graduating STEM students at the University of Waterloo found 84 per cent of the class planned to work in the U.S., driven primarily by significantly higher compensation. Nevermind attracting the best and brightest; we should be more worried about the U.S. absorbing our best and brightest.

In 2023, think tank The Dais clocked the average American tech salary to be about 46 per cent higher than the average Canadian tech salary with exchange rate and cost of living taken into account.

Top talent is smart enough to run a simple equation: wages are too low and living costs are too high. In particular, housing costs are outrageously divorced from incomes. Canada’s tech hubs in particular have some of the most distorted price-to-income ratios in the world….

Source: Opinion | Mark Carney hopes to lure tech workers to Canada. One problem: Canada is already struggling to keep and attract talent

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ICYMI – Globe editorial: Ottawa narrows the private path for settling refugees

2025/10/15 Leave a comment

One of the more successful programs:

…However, the sidelining of this remarkable program is unfortunate, as privately sponsored refugees have better outcomes than those assisted by the government. Not only is it initially cheaper for the government, but a study tracking the outcomes of Syrian refugees showed that privately sponsored ones were more likely to be employed and less likely to be on government assistance. Privately sponsored refugees also have higher incomes. A 2024 Senate report recommended boosting the program. 

Yes, Canada needs to get better control of its immigration system, but let’s not lose track of our rich tradition of helping refugees. Their entry doesn’t always need to be directly managed by government – grassroots groups can help, and their strong interest shows these refugees have support to integrate here. 

While it’s true that Canada can’t help all people in need during this time of increased global displacement, surely we can maintain our commitments to help refugees. The privately sponsored program remains one of the best ways to do it. 

Source: Ottawa narrows the private path for settling refugees

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ICYMI – Brunner: Canadian international student policy at a crossroads

2025/10/15 Leave a comment

Good list of some of the issues and some easier to address than others:

This policy brief identifies four core challenges:

  • Lack of clear, cross-sectoral policy co-ordination: A disjointed, diffused and volatile policy arena is marked by competing objectives among its many actors and lacks a holistic approach to long-term planning and shared accountability.
  • Funding dependency: Overreliance on international student tuition fees as a revenue source has left post-secondary institutions vulnerable and without clear alternatives.
  • Damaged public consensus: High international student recruitment levels, unsupported by adequate settlement services and infrastructure, have eroded public support not only for international students but also for immigration more broadly.
  • Transparency and fairness: Complex and inconsistent immigration pathways create prolonged uncertainty and vulnerability for international students, resulting in a system marked by precarity and potential exploitation.

To address these systemic issues, this brief recommends:

  • An international education strategy that is collaborative, multi-level and cross-sectoral;
  • Predictable and clearly communicated pathways to permanent residency so international students can make informed choices before choosing to study in Canada;
  • Increased and sustained public investment in higher education to reduce institutions’ dependency on international student tuition;
  • Co-ordinated, universally accessible settlement services with clear accountability across government and institutional actors;
  • Strengthened transparency and regulation of institutional and recruitment practices, supported by accessible public data on student outcomes.

By rebalancing the policy landscape toward sustainability, transparency and ethical responsibility, Canada can better manage international students’ economic benefits, protect institutional integrity and uphold its commitments to the international students it recruits.

Source: Brunner: Canadian international student policy at a crossroads

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Yin: Canada doesn’t like immigration anymore. This is a problem

2025/10/14 Leave a comment

Even the Century Initiative has moved past this simplistic thinking:

…In a world where Canada can no longer rely on others for its security, population size is also key for geopolitical power. Trade agreements are negotiated to gain access to large markets – which is partly why China and India wield so much influence, and why countries have rushed to accommodate Donald Trump’s tariffs, a country that is nearly ten times larger than us. Military strength, too, depends on demographic depth: Active forces can only ever be a small share of the population, and Canada’s military currently faces a shortfall of nearly 14,000 personnel. If we want Canada to carry more weight in the world, Canada must be bigger.

…The purpose here is not to fearmonger, or to dismiss the genuine concerns surrounding immigration. But it is important to keep our eye on long run objectives and to frame the current debate correctly. We should prioritize addressing housing for now, but large scale immigration will always be essential in growing Canada’s potential.

Kevin Yin is a contributing columnist for The Globe and Mail and an economics doctoral student at the University of California, Berkeley.

Source: Canada doesn’t like immigration anymore. This is a problem

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Keller: How Canada got immigration right for so long – and then got it very, very wrong

2025/10/11 1 Comment

Good long analysis that captures the dynamic and history well. Money quote:

It was a deliberate policy, but it was also an absence of mind. It was like one of those aviation disasters where the cabin depressurizes, and the pilots, unaware of their impairment via oxygen-deprivation, start making what post-crash investigators will identify as less-than-rational decisions.

Source: How Canada got immigration right for so long – and then got it very, very wrong

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Inspections of temporary foreign worker employers in Canada have plummeted — despite a surge of workers

2025/10/11 Leave a comment

Not a good take:

The number of inspections of employers hiring temporary foreign workers has plummeted over the past five years — with most conducted without inspectors ever setting foot on worksites — even as the number of migrant workers and reports of abuse have surged, according to government data obtained by the Star.

Annual inspections fell 57 per cent, from 3,365 in 2020 to 1,435 in 2024, according to Employment and Social Development Canada, the department that oversees the temporary foreign worker (TFW) program.

There are three triggers for an inspection listed by the Immigration Department: a history of non-compliance, random selection and a reason to suspect non-compliance including a received allegation or complaint.

From 2020 to the end of 2024, 77 per cent of more than 12,000 employer inspections have been “paper-based only,” meaning the vast majority of these inspections take place remotely without any on-site reviews of the workplaces where it’s suspected that violations occurred.

The declining number of inspections comes at a time when the TFW program has ballooned, undergoing a massive expansion in the last decade, amid rising allegations of abuse and penalties issued to employers violating the program. Labour experts and advocates say the combination of fewer on-site inspections and rapid growth of the program raises serious concerns about oversight, enforcement and the protection of vulnerable workers.

The number of TFW approvals has more than doubled in recent years, rising to nearly 51,000 approvals in the third quarter of 2024 alone, more than triple the 15,507 approvals from the third quarter of 2021.From 2020 to the end of 2024, 77 per cent of more than 12,000 employer inspections have been “paper-based only,” meaning the vast majority of these inspections take place remotely without any on-site reviews of the workplaces where it’s suspected that violations occurred.

The declining number of inspections comes at a time when the TFW program has ballooned, undergoing a massive expansion in the last decade, amid rising allegations of abuse and penalties issued to employers violating the program. Labour experts and advocates say the combination of fewer on-site inspections and rapid growth of the program raises serious concerns about oversight, enforcement and the protection of vulnerable workers.

The number of TFW approvals has more than doubled in recent years, rising to nearly 51,000 approvals in the third quarter of 2024 alone, more than triple the 15,507 approvals from the third quarter of 2021….

Source: Inspections of temporary foreign worker employers in Canada have plummeted — despite a surge of workers

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