Ottawa: Canada has planned to reduce its temporary residents and set a cap on temporary immigration for the first time ever, the latest government effort in addressing a prolonged housing crisis and stretched essential services. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, in a social media post, announced a major cut in low-paid jobs and temporary foreign workers. He stressed that the labour market has changed tremendously in recent years and therefore his government will now focus on Canadian workers and youth.
"We're reducing the number of low-wage, temporary foreign workers in Canada. The labour market has changed. Now is the time for our businesses to invest in Canadian workers and youth," said Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on X.
Why is Canada taking action on the labour force?
According to official data, Canada has seen a sharp rise in international students, foreign workers and other temporary residents who come to the country on time-limited visas as Trudeau's government relied on immigration to drive economic growth and plug labour gaps.
However, the Liberal government has also come under intense political pressure for its immigration policies, with critics arguing that they have exacerbated a housing crunch. Some services provided by the provinces, such as education and healthcare, are also struggling to keep up with population growth.
Canada's housing crisis
In the first week of this month, Immigration Minister Marc Miller said he would convene a meeting with his provincial and territorial counterparts in May to finalise the plan. "We need to ensure the number of temporary residents entering the country is at a sustainable level," Miller told reporters in Ottawa. "Starting this fall for the first time, we will expand the immigration levels plan to include both temporary resident arrivals and permanent resident arrivals," he said, referring to the federal government's immigration targets.
"The government wants to reduce temporary residents to 5 per cent of the total population over the next three years from 6.2 per cent in 2023," said Miller. That would be a cut of about 20 per cent from Canada's 2.5 million temporary residents in 2023.
In November last year, the Trudeau government had promised to stop ramping up immigration for permanent residents from 2026 onwards. In January this year, Canada announced a two-year cap on the intake of foreign students and said it would stop giving work permits to some students after graduation as it seeks to rein in record numbers of newcomers.
Will Canada's new move impact Indians?
The latest announcement by the Trudeau government will definitely have a significant impact on Indians amid the fact a large number of the population is either from India or has Indian origin. A significant number of people belong to Punjab and Haryana who either go to Canada in search of high-paying jobs or higher studies.
The move is also crucial as the country is already facing inflation and a job crisis, and the latest announcement will derail the planning of Indian students who are willing to stay in the country in search of jobs.
(With inputs from agency)
