THE Canadian government will cut the number of immigrants it will allow to stay in the country starting next year, marking an almost 100, 000 decrease in new permanent residents.

This would be the first in years that the country is limiting the number of its immigrants, noting a 21 percent drop from the previous years, as per National Post.

Canada will welcome over one million new residents in the next three years with 395, 000 immigrants by next year, a significant drop from the 485, 000 number this year. In succeeding years, the number of immigrants will be 380,000 and 365, 000 for the year 2026 and 2027, respectively.

The sudden shift in policy by a Liberal government is a move for Canada trying to steady its power.

Meanwhile, the number of temporary residents will be

reduced by about 30,000 to around 300 000, a report by Reuters said.

Just last year, Canada had planned to bring 500, 000 new permanent residents into the country for the year 2025 and the same number for next year.

This new policy to be imposed by the government received mixed reactions from its people, this did not sit well with migrant advocates while others have agreed to this as “there are too many immigrants” already in Canada.

Syed Hussan, spokesperson for the Migrant Rights Network Secretariat describes the move as the “most egregious rollbacks of migrant rights in Canadian history”, adding that this policy shift is a direct assault on migrants “who will be forced to remain temporary or become undocumented, pushed further into exploitative jobs”.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau during the announcement of the said policy on Thursday (Canadian time) said, while immigration play an important role in Canada’s future, “it must be controlled and it must be sustainable” also.

“Immigration is central to the story of Canada. Our decision to temporarily reduce the number of immigrants is a pragmatic one that addresses the needs of our economy right now” Trudeau said.

Immigration Minister Marc Miller also said the volume of immigrants the country is putting in is of “concern”, adding that while Canada is an open country “not everyone can come to this country”.

Moreover, lowering the immigration number would also curb the housing shortage in Canada, according to Miller.

The Canadian official said the level of immigrants in the country has also posed challenges in some aspects like the increase in unemployment among the youth and newcomers. He said that they will take measures to rebalance their system by setting the right number of newcomers.(LAO)

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