Connect with us
[the_ad id="89560"]

Housing

Trudeau admits immigration too much for Canada to ‘absorb’ but keeps target at record high

Published

4 minute read

From LifeSiteNews

By Clare Marie Merkowsky

Despite his admission that the influx of people has outpaced Canada’s ability to sustain itself, Trudeau said he is committed to continuing his government’s plan to bring in 500,000 permanent immigrants each year.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has admitted that his mass immigration policies have driven Canadians’ wages down and attributed to the housing crisis, but he still insists on bringing in hundreds of thousands of people each year.  

During an April 2 media conference in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, Trudeau acknowledged that his immigration policies have negatively affected Canadians after a journalist questioned him on how his policies have contributed to record high unaffordability in the nation.  

“Over the past few years, we’ve seen a massive spike in temporary immigration, whether it’s temporary foreign workers or whether it’s international students in particular that have grown at a rate far beyond what Canada has been able to absorb,” he admitted.  

“To give an example, in 2017, two per cent of Canada’s population was made up of temporary immigrants,” Trudeau continued. “Now we’re at 7.5 per cent of our population comprised of temporary immigrants. That’s something we need to get back under control.”  

Amid heckling from protestors, Trudeau acknowledged that the immigration crisis must be solved. However, he attributed the negative effects only to the spike in “temporary” immigrants, who he claims are “putting pressure on our communities.”

“That’s something that we need to get back under control, both for the benefit of those people because international students we’re seeing increasingly vulnerable to mental health challenges, to not being able to thrive and get the education they want,” he stated. 

“But also, increasingly more and more businesses [are] relying on temporary foreign workers in a way that is driving down wages in some sectors,” Trudeau continued.  

Despite the admission, Trudeau announced that he still plans to bring in permanent immigrants at a record pace, despite Canadians struggling to afford homes and even food.  

“Every year, we bring in about 450,000, now close to 500,000, permanent residents a year, and that is part of the necessary growth of Canada,” he insisted. “It benefits our citizens, our communities, it benefits our economy.”

While Trudeau remains insistent that mass immigration “benefits” the economy, recent figures show that the nation’s GDP per capita growth rate is dismal compared to other countries with lower relative immigration levels like the United States.

The Bank of Canada has even gone as far as saying that the weakening productivity of the nation’s economy has become “an emergency.”

In March, Canada reached a population of 41 million, just 9 months after hitting the 40 million mark. Such growth is unprecedented in recent history and among the highest immigration rates in the world.

Trudeau’s acknowledgment comes as a recent report found that Canada is one of the unhappiest places in the West for people in their 20s as young Canadians are experiencing the effects of Trudeau’s government, which has been criticized for its overspending, onerous climate regulations, lax immigration policies, and “woke” politics.     

Additionally, a March poll revealed that seven out of 10 Canadians believe the country is broken and that the Trudeau government does not focus on issues that matter. 

Furthermore, many have pointed out that considering rising home prices, many Canadians under 30 are at risk of never being able to purchase a home.

Alberta

Governments in Alberta should spur homebuilding amid population explosion

Published on

From the Fraser Institute

By Tegan Hill and Austin Thompson

In 2024, construction started on 47,827 housing units—the most since 48,336 units in 2007 when population growth was less than half of what it was in 2024.

Alberta has long been viewed as an oasis in Canada’s overheated housing market—a refuge for Canadians priced out of high-cost centres such as Vancouver and Toronto. But the oasis is starting to dry up. House prices and rents in the province have spiked by about one-third since the start of the pandemic. According to a recent Maru poll, more than 70 per cent of Calgarians and Edmontonians doubt they will ever be able to afford a home in their city. Which raises the question: how much longer can this go on?

Alberta’s housing affordability problem reflects a simple reality—not enough homes have been built to accommodate the province’s growing population. The result? More Albertans competing for the same homes and rental units, pushing prices higher.

Population growth has always been volatile in Alberta, but the recent surge, fuelled by record levels of immigration, is unprecedented. Alberta has set new population growth records every year since 2022, culminating in the largest-ever increase of 186,704 new residents in 2024—nearly 70 per cent more than the largest pre-pandemic increase in 2013.

Homebuilding has increased, but not enough to keep pace with the rise in population. In 2024, construction started on 47,827 housing units—the most since 48,336 units in 2007 when population growth was less than half of what it was in 2024.

Moreover, from 1972 to 2019, Alberta added 2.1 new residents (on average) for every housing unit started compared to 3.9 new residents for every housing unit started in 2024. Put differently, today nearly twice as many new residents are potentially competing for each new home compared to historical norms.

While Alberta attracts more Canadians from other provinces than any other province, federal immigration and residency policies drive Alberta’s population growth. So while the provincial government has little control over its population growth, provincial and municipal governments can affect the pace of homebuilding.

For example, recent provincial amendments to the city charters in Calgary and Edmonton have helped standardize building codes, which should minimize cost and complexity for builders who operate across different jurisdictions. Municipal zoning reforms in CalgaryEdmonton and Red Deer have made it easier to build higher-density housing, and Lethbridge and Medicine Hat may soon follow suit. These changes should make it easier and faster to build homes, helping Alberta maintain some of the least restrictive building rules and quickest approval timelines in Canada.

There is, however, room for improvement. Policymakers at both the provincial and municipal level should streamline rules for building, reduce regulatory uncertainty and development costs, and shorten timelines for permit approvals. Calgary, for instance, imposes fees on developers to fund a wide array of public infrastructure—including roads, sewers, libraries, even buses—while Edmonton currently only imposes fees to fund the construction of new firehalls.

It’s difficult to say how long Alberta’s housing affordability woes will endure, but the situation is unlikely to improve unless homebuilding increases, spurred by government policies that facilitate more development.

Tegan Hill

Director, Alberta Policy, Fraser Institute

Austin Thompson

Senior Policy Analyst, Fraser Institute
Continue Reading

2025 Federal Election

Homebuilding in Canada stalls despite population explosion

Published on

From the Fraser Institute

By Austin Thompson and Steven Globerman

Between 1972 and 2019, Canada’s population increased by 1.8 residents for every new housing unit started compared to 3.9 new residents in 2024. In other words, Canada must now house more than twice as many new residents per new housing unit as it did during the five decades prior to the pandemic

In many parts of Canada, the housing affordability crisis continues with no end in sight. And many Canadians, priced out of the housing market or struggling to afford rent increases, are left wondering how much longer this will continue.

Simply put, too few housing units are being built for the country’s rapidly growing population, which has exploded due to record-high levels of immigration and the federal government’s residency policies.

As noted in a new study published by the Fraser Institute, the country added an all-time high 1.2 million new residents in 2023—more than double the previous record in 2019—and another 951,000 new residents in 2024. Altogether, Canada’s population has grown by about 3 million people since 2022—roughly matching the total population increase during the 1990s.

Meanwhile, homebuilding isn’t keeping up. In 2024, construction started on roughly 245,000 new housing units nationwide—down from a recent peak of 272,000 in 2021. By contrast, in the 1970s construction started on more than 240,000 housing units (on average) per year—when Canada’s population grew by approximately 280,000 people annually.

In fact, between 1972 and 2019, Canada’s population increased by 1.8 residents for every new housing unit started compared to 3.9 new residents in 2024. In other words, Canada must now house more than twice as many new residents per new housing unit as it did during the five decades prior to the pandemic. And of course, housing follows the laws of supply and demand—when a lot more prospective buyers and renters chase a limited supply of new homes, prices increase.

This key insight should guide the policy responses from all levels of government.

For example, the next federal government—whoever that may be—should avoid policies that merely fuel housing demand such as home savings accounts. And provincial governments (including in Ontario and British Columbia) should scrap any policies that discourage new housing supply such as rent controls, which reduce incentives to build rental housing. At the municipal level, governments across the country should ensure that permit approval timelines and building fees do not discourage builders from breaking ground. Increasing housing supply is, however, only part of the solution. The next federal government should craft immigration and residency policies so population growth doesn’t overwhelm available housing supply, driving up costs for Canadians.

It’s hard to predict how long Canada’s housing affordability crisis will last. But without more homebuilding, slower population growth, or both, there’s little reason to expect affordability woes to subside anytime soon.

Austin Thompson

Senior Policy Analyst, Fraser Institute

Steven Globerman

Senior Fellow and Addington Chair in Measurement, Fraser Institute
Continue Reading

Trending

X