Long considered a welcoming country for immigrants, Canada is putting an unprecedented halt to its open immigration policy. Mark Carney, the new prime minister, confirmed the move by freezing targets for welcoming new arrivals. What's behind this shift? FRANCE 24's François Rihouay and Joanne Profeta report.
The decision to tighten Canada's immigration policy seems to have been largely dictated by polls in recent months. Fifty-eight percent of Canadians now consider immigration to be "too high" in the country, up from 27 percent in 2022. The reasons cited are a creeping housing crisis and the strain on social and health services.
Back in 2023, in the midst of a labour shortage, the world's second-largest country welcomed more than 1.27 million new residents – the highest number since 1957. Today, nearly one in four people in Canada were born abroad, a unique situation among G7 countries.
As anti-immigration movements such as "Take Back Canada" gain ground and public opinion suddenly rejects the once-cherished model of welcoming immigrants, foreign workers remind us that they are indispensable to Canada's economy and its future.
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