Boardroom Brief: EP. 02 – Assessing the Impacts of Canada’s Latest Immigration Policy Changes

In our latest episode of Boardroom Brief, we delve into a topic that’s recently been making waves in the news: Canada’s immigration policy.

Known for its historically open immigration policies, Canada has consistently maintained some of the highest foreign-born population ratios among Western nations. Newcomers to Canada have played an essential role in expanding the labour markets, supporting demographic shifts, and driving economic growth. In 2023, Canada experienced its largest population growth in decades, welcoming ~1.27 million newcomers, which marked the fastest growth rate in over 60 years. While essential for addressing a declining birth rate and an aging population, this rapid expansion has also presented challenges, raising concerns around our nation’s ability to absorb the recent volume of new residents, especially in major urban centers like Toronto and Vancouver, where housing demand has long been outstripping supply.

In response, the federal government has proposed implementing tighter immigration policies to manage and reduce immigration to more sustainable levels.

Could these changes, along with a potential reduction in immigration targets, help alleviate housing shortages, or will they hinder Canada’s economic outlook and labour market needs in sectors currently facing shortages? How could this pivot toward tighter immigration policies affect housing demand, particularly in the GTA?

Join us as CEO Sasha Cucuz delves into the potential impacts of these policy shifts.