More Canadians want fewer immigrants: poll

A new poll reveals that more than half of Canadians want the federal government to accept fewer immigrants and international students due to skyrocketing housing costs.

A Nanos survey for The Globe and Mail found 53% of those polled said they want to see Canada accept fewer immigrants than the federal plan, compared with 34% in March.

The poll also found that 55% of Canadians want Canada to accept fewer international students than the 900,000 expected by the government this year. This is a rise of almost 20 percentage points in the past six months in the number of Canadians who think this country should accept fewer immigrants than Ottawa’s 2023 target of 465,000.

Nik Nanos, chairman of Nanos Research, said pressure on housing was a factor in the polling results, according to the Globe and Mail.

They are probably “more about the economic pressure Canadians feel they are under, especially the cost of housing than anything else.

“Regardless of Canada’s tradition of welcoming newcomers, there is a reality that people are wondering where the new people will live and what it might mean in terms of even more pressure on housing.”

Canada’s new housing minister Sean Fraser — immigration minister before the recent cabinet shuffle — suggested that capping the number of international students could reduce the country’s housing crisis last Aug. 21 at the cabinet retreat in Charlottetown, PEI.

According to official Immigration, Refugee and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) data, Canada currently has more than 800,000 active study permit holders, and their presence represents a $22.3 billion yearly contribution to the country’s economy.

The federal government’s list of designated learning institutions (DLI) shows Canada currently has 1,622 post-secondary institutions that are approved to accept international students with study visas. Most of these schools are in Ontario, Quebec and B.C.

International students pay substantially higher tuition at Canada’s top universities. For example, students at the University of Toronto, pay almost $60,000 per year — ten times as much as what Canadian students pay if they live outside the province of Ontario.

Lisa Wallace, spokesperson for Universities Canada, suggested that, instead of placing a limit on the number of international students, the government should work with universities, many of which already offer housing solutions to incoming international students.

The federal housing minister’s remarks were also met with skepticism by public officials from various provinces, including Nova Scotia and Saskatchewan, where MP Michael Kram said that international students were a critical element in Saskatchewan’s long-term vision and that cities like Regina do not face the same housing issues as more complex urban settings like Toronto.

Katrina King, spokesperson for Colleges and Institutes Canada, said in a statement that a cap on international students would have far-reaching consequences.

“Although implementing a cap on international students may seem to provide temporary relief, it could have lasting adverse effects on our communities, including exacerbating current labour shortages,” King said,

“Furthermore, we want to emphasize that students are not to blame for Canada’s housing crisis; they are among those most impacted.”

Director of University Affairs at the University of British Columbia, Matthew Ramsey, said that the university has been clear with Immigration, Refugee and Citizenship Canada in the past that it does not endorse a cap on international students.

Damanpreet Singh, the international student representative for Canada’s national student union, the Canadian Federation of Students, said Fraser’s idea is nothing more than a “band-aid” solution.

“International students are being blamed for housing,” said Singh, a University of Cape Breton graduate, in a phone interview with New Canadian Media.

Singh says international students face increased housing pressures and are not responsible for them.

“Government officials need to improve their strategies,” Singh said. “[A cap] will not eliminate inflation, luxury housing, gentrification, housing scams, and many other factors that affect Canadians and non-Canadians who are trying to find a home.”

Meanwhile, New Canadian Media reported that advocates for international students struggling to find housing in North Bay, Ont. say they know of hundreds who can’t find accommodation near Canadore or Nipissing University.

“There are easily more than 200 students directly impacted by the accommodation crisis in North Bay,” Montreal Student Youth Organization member Mandeep Singh told New Canadian Media this week.

International students running out of housing options set up tents skirting Canadore’s campus to demand alternatives if the situation can’t be remedied.

This year’s rental market report, published in January, did not list the vacancy rate of North Bay but did show that Greater Sudbury on the western side of Lake Nipissing has a vacancy rate of 2.3 percent in its purpose-built rentals.

In comparison, Toronto’s purpose-built rental vacancy rate is 1.7 percent, and its condo/apartment rate is 1.1 percent. In Vancouver, purpose-builts have a 0.9 percent vacancy rate, and condo/apartments are at 2.2 percent.

According to an August report, tenants in Toronto paid the highest rent in southern Ontario, and a two-bedroom apartment rented for $3, 370 per month. Vancouver has the highest rents in Canada. – with reports from New Canadian Media