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As public support for immigration continues to fall, the federal government announced yesterday it is freezing its target for how many permanent residents it will welcome to Canada for 2026, keeping the number at 500,000.
Ottawa’s decision not to continue the pattern of raising its targets follows a sharp drop in public support for immigration over the past year, according to recent polling, as Canadians increasingly link affordability and housing concerns with an influx of newcomers.
Immigration Minister Marc Miller acknowledged yesterday that housing was among the factors considered. He said to address a chronic shortage in construction workers, the government aims to bring in more skilled tradespeople from overseas to build more homes.
- Campbell Clark: Time to address the immigration number that matters now
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Minister Marc Miller holds a press conference on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on Wednesday, Nov. 1, 2023.Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press
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Canadian among first departure of foreign nationals from Gaza Strip
One Canadian was among the hundreds of foreign nationals and dozens of seriously injured Palestinians who were allowed to leave the Gaza Strip yesterday, the first such evacuations since Israel began a massive bombing campaign more than three weeks ago.
Authorities in Israel and Egypt gave permission for badly wounded Palestinians to exit through the southern Rafah crossing into Egypt. They also authorized the departure of foreign passport holders.
A document published on Facebook by the General Authority for Crossings and Borders in Gaza showed the list of foreign nationals leaving Gaza included citizens of Australia, Austria, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Finland, Indonesia, Japan and Jordan. The U.S. State Department said more departures of foreign nationals are anticipated over the next few days. The Canadian government is working to get a total of 451 Canadians out of the West Bank and Gaza – nearly all of them in the latter.
- Israeli ground offensive aims to encircle Gaza City
- Israel not in violation of humanitarian law, Israeli jurist says
- More than 3,600 Palestinian children killed in just three weeks of war, Gaza health ministry says
B.C. rejects coroner panel’s call to expand access to safer-supply program
British Columbia has rejected the recommendation of an expert panel to allow community-based agencies to provide access to regulated opioids and stimulants without prescriptions. The panel made the recommendation in a report released yesterday to combat drug deaths from the toxic illicit supply.
The move would have expanded the province’s fledging safer-supply program, which has faced challenges since its introduction three years ago.
British Columbia also released its latest illicit drug death figures yesterday, which showed that 175 people died in September. Since 2016, the year B.C. declared a public-health emergency in response to surging overdose deaths from an increasingly volatile drug supply, more than 13,300 people have died.
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Also on our radar
Former minister calls for reversal of carbon-price exemption: Catherine McKenna, the former Liberal environment minister, is urging Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to reverse his carbon-price exemption for home-heating oil, saying the government has “confused carbon pricing with affordability.” Also, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre tabled a motion yesterday that will force all MPs to vote on whether the exemption should be expanded.
Auditor-General to probe allegations at SDTC: Federal Auditor-General Karen Hogan is launching an investigation into Sustainable Development Technology Canada, Ottawa’s main funding agency for green technology, after a third-party report detailed evidence of conflict-of-interest breaches and lax governance.
Developers delay condo launch as sales drop: Toronto developers have delayed launching almost 14,000 condo units this year as demand falls because of higher borrowing costs and economic uncertainty. Sales of preconstruction condos have slowed significantly this year as interest rates have climbed, pushing up costs for both buyers and builders.
Supreme Court pick hailed as a voice for minority rights: Justice Mary Moreau, the first francophone nominee from the West to the Canada’s Supreme Court, will be introduced today. Those who have known Justice Moreau over the decades say cases from early in her career demonstrate that she will be a big supporter of minority rights during her time in the country’s top court.
Pension fight continues between Ottawa, Alberta: Federal Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland rejected in a letter to Premier Danielle Smith yesterday Alberta’s claim that it is entitled to more than half of the Canada Pension Plan’s assets if the province decided to withdraw from the plan. She said the idea that Albertans would pay less in pension contributions under a homegrown plan is “ultimately based upon a flawed analysis” of how much money the province would receive if it left the CPP. Freeland is scheduled to meet with provincial and territorial finance ministers tomorrow to discuss Alberta’s proposal.
Dire warnings dominate AI summit: The world’s first artificial intelligence safety summit began in Britain yesterday with urgent warnings about the potential dangers of the technology, but with very little discussed about how to confront those challenges.
Morning markets
Rate hopes bolster markets: European shares and bonds extended a global rally on Thursday as traders double down on bets that U.S. interest rates - the main driver of world borrowing costs - have finally peaked. Just after 5:30 a.m. ET, Britain’s FTSE 100 rose 1.29 per cent. Germany’s DAX and France’s CAC 40 added 1.62 per cent and 1.77 per cent, respectively. In Asia, Japan’s Nikkei was up 1.10 per cent. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng added 0.75 per cent. New York futures were positive. The Canadian dollar was higher at 72.41 US cents.
What everyone’s talking about
Lawrence Martin: “There are some who believe he will do this, that he’ll announce he’s stepping down in the first week in January. They’re in the minority. Most think the lust for yet more power won’t let Mr. Trudeau see the realities as they should be seen, and that he’ll foolishly try and defy the sensible 10-year timeline. At his and his party’s peril.”
David Parkinson: “The outlook suggests that the recession we need to worry about in this cycle, in a very concrete and meaningful sense, is one where stagnation becomes entrenched and pervasive. The longer an economy flounders, the more scarring is inflicted – and the more difficult a recovery can become. Two small quarterly GDP dips don’t get us there. But they are a warning sign. The road ahead may prove more treacherous than the “technical recession” – or whatever you want to call it – that brought us here.”
Cathal Kelly: “‘Semi-famous person dies tragically’ is a two- or three-day story. A day for shock, a day for explanations and a final day for tributes. But ‘Semi-famous person dies suspiciously’ can run and run. Maybe that explains how the accidental mid-game death of ex-NHLer Adam Johnson has gone from a tragedy to a whodunnit. Whatever the cause, the result is obscene.”
Today’s editorial cartoon
Illustration by David Parkins
Living better
How to have an art-full weekend escape in Montreal
A growing number of art and décor lovers are praising Montreal for having similar vibes to indie enclaves such as Berlin and Brooklyn. With its ever-growing gallery, music and cuisine scenes, Quebec’s largest city is hitting its stride as it mashes up classic and modern sensibilities. Here’s a step-by-step guide on how to enjoy Montreal’s art and music scene and spoil every sense along the way.
Moment in time: Nov. 2, 1983
‘Thriller’ single released worldwide by Michael Jackson
There were only seven singles on Michael Jackson’s Thriller album – and each one made the Billboard Top Ten. The final single, released almost a year after the Grammy-winning album came out in 1982, was the title track, Thriller, and it was the one – accompanied by the unforgettable horror flick video – that went on to shift the landscape of pop music in America. Produced by Quincy Jones and written by Rod Temperton, the single was originally called Starlight, which was later switched to Thriller after Mr. Temperton realized the pop star loved horror movies. From there, they invested fully in making Thriller as creepy as possible. Horror flick king Vincent Price was tapped to do the spooky rap at the end of the song, and Mr. Jackson asked cinema director John Landis (An American Werewolf in London) to make the 14-minute mini-movie in which Mr. Jackson becomes a zombie and performs the iconic dance routine with a horde of the undead. Mr. Jackson said at the time that he wanted to create “the best short music movie we could make.” Thriller was the first music video to be inducted into the National Film Registry. Gayle MacDonald
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