Is Canada Really So Immigrant-Friendly?

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U.S. news reports often suggest that Canada has it down on immigration.  The reality appears to be more complex.

In what I found to be an interesting analysis, Claire Porter Robbins for Foreign Policy evaluates the popular conception that “[w]hile other Western nations have faced heavy criticism for their migration policies, Canada has garnered a reputation as being immigrant-friendly.” Recent immigration policy developments suggest otherwise.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in November 2022 announced a plan to expand immigration.

“Laid out as a way to build up the Canadian economy, which faces labor shortages and a declining birth rate, the plan prioritizes bringing in skilled immigrants. . . .  Ten months later, Trudeau’s plan is facing skepticism from both sides of the political spectrum. Criticism from the far right is no surprise. But as the government has struggled to integrate and support migrants, the prospect of bringing in significantly more of them has led immigration experts and advocates to air grievances about what they see as the administration’s failings in related sectors, notably refugee resettlement and housing.

Meanwhile, public opinion on immigration has started to shift. As cost of living and housing prices stay stubbornly high, anti-immigration sentiment—long boiling—may rise to the surface.”

KJ