Immigration has increased under the Liberals; 321,045 immigrants came in 2018 — the largest number since the First World War. The party hopes to bump that number to 350,000 by 2021. Liberal Immigration Minister Ahmed Hussen said he wants to accept more refugees, while the Liberal government has imposed measures to crack down on “asylum-shopping” and regulate immigration consultants.
Conservatives haven’t said exactly how many immigrants they would accept each year. They have stressed the importance of “economic immigration” and prioritizing those facing “true persecution.” The party would allow employers to sponsor permanent residency applications. It promises to end illegal border crossings and would instead increase refugee screening and promote refugee private sponsorship.
The NDP don’t cite a specific number when asked how many immigrants they would accept. The party has stressed the need to tackle applicant backlogs and prioritize family reunification. It promises to regulate the immigration consultant industry and get rid of the Safe Third Country agreement, which prevents migrants who made claims in the U.S. from making claims in Canada.
Greens want to increase immigration to areas with unfilled job vacancies, but don’t cite targets for the number of people they would accept. They too want to get rid of the Safe Third Country agreement. The party also wants to start a discussion about climate refugees and wants them included as an official refugee category.
The party says the Quebec National Assembly should decide how many immigrants and refugees the province accepts — not the federal government. It wants Quebec exempted from the Multiculturalism Act. Like the NDP, the party wants to scrap the Safe Third Country agreement and give Quebec veto powers over federal decisions to expel refugees.
The party believes current immigration levels are “unsustainable.” It suggests a drop in immigration, from 321,045 (the 2018 number) to between 100,000 and 150,000. It wants fewer refugees, too, and would rely instead on private sponsors. It promises to designate the entire border an official port of entry, fence off problem areas and send back those crossing illegally.
Find out more about the promises parties are making in our party platform tracker.
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