Diab says immigration plan about predictability, doing the ‘right thing’

OTTAWA - Immigration Minister Lena Diab stated that the new immigration levels plan is aimed at maintaining predictability in the system while doing the right thing by addressing a severe backlog in the humanitarian permanent residency stream. The plan, announced on Thursday, sets targets for 380,000 permanent residents and 370,000 new temporary residents, as well as a commitment to convert over 200,000 long-term temporary residents into permanent status by the end of 2027.

Most of these 200,000 individuals are already in Canada, holding jobs and housing, and are not anticipated to exacerbate the burden on healthcare and social services. Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre released a video on Sunday, alleging that the government's plan will bring in more people, lower wages, and escalate rents. Immigration has become a contentious political issue in recent years, with surveys indicating that roughly half of the population believes that too many immigrants have arrived in Canada.

These were Immigration Minister Diab's initial public remarks on the new immigration levels plan since its introduction last week.