Poilievre will likely have a mandate to do so. As he put it in his press conference, Canada’s immigration system used to be a competitive advantage
Liberals who make lazy comparisons between Donald Trump and Pierre Poilievre risk using the kind of bombastic rhetoric they accuse the Conservative leader of employing.
It’s true both men galvanize rage against cultural elites.
But Trump is an authoritarian nativist who disdains democracy, while Poilievre is a fairly conventional populist conservative.
Enjoy the latest local, national and international news.
Enjoy the latest local, national and international news.
Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience.
Don't have an account? Create Account
On immigration, the Washington Post reported on Wednesday that Trump is planning militarized mass deportations and detention camps if he’s re-elected.
Poilievre, on the other hand, has resisted pressures to demonize immigrants, even as Canada has witnessed a significant increase in the number of people who think the country accepts too many newcomers.
That said, at a press conference in Kitchener, Ont. on Wednesday, Poilievre gave his clearest indication yet that he will crack down on the number of new immigrants if he forms government.
He said a Poilievre government would apply a “mathematical formula” that links population growth to the growth in the supply of housing. “It’s the only way to eliminate the housing shortage — adding homes faster than we add population,” he said.
It’s not clear what he means exactly, but the facts are that Canada brought in nearly 1.3-million newcomers last year: 471,550 permanent residents and around 800,000 new non-permanent residents (students and temporary foreign workers). At the same time, Canada built 223,513 new homes, a 10-per-cent drop from the previous year thanks to expensive materials and a shortage of labour.
This newsletter tackles hot topics with boldness, verve and wit. (Subscriber-exclusive edition on Fridays)
By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc.
A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder.
The next issue of Platformed will soon be in your inbox.
We encountered an issue signing you up. Please try again
The housing crisis offers Poilievre an enduring and legitimate issue around which he can rally discontent
A logical mathematical formula would be two newcomers for each house built, given units usually accommodate two adults. That would almost account for the Liberal immigration target of 500,000 new permanent residents in 2025, but it would mean a new government would have to freeze work and student visas — unlikely, given the economic constraints.
One way or another, Poilievre is going to have to dramatically reduce the number of immigrants far beyond the 364,000 new student visa cap imagined by the Liberal government.
Fortunately for him, he will likely have a mandate to do so. As he put it in his press conference, Canada’s immigration system used to be a competitive advantage.
“(But) Trudeau, through total incompetence, opened the floodgates in a way that was disconnected from the number of homes needed to house people,” he said.
It’s hard to argue with that logic and even Poilievre’s harshest critics would struggle to suggest that the status quo is tenable.
The Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp.’s latest analysis indicates a 3.5-million home housing gap that will grow to four million by 2030 if current immigration levels are maintained. Its study did not factor in policies aimed at increasing the housing supply, but they will not make a dent in the housing gap unless the number of new arrivals is diminished.
The housing crisis offers Poilievre an enduring and legitimate issue around which he can rally discontent: the lack of an obvious path to home ownership for a generation of young Canadians. “It takes 25 years to save up for a down payment for the average family in Toronto. Before Trudeau, you paid off a mortgage in that time,” he said.
The Conservative leader has been adept at tapping into a chronically angry, blue-collar audience that feels it has been screwed repeatedly by governing elites.
In Poilievre’s world, there is plenty of blame to go around when you’re explaining why Canada is broken: NDP and Liberal socialists, local government gatekeepers, repeat violent criminals, Big Pharma, the Bank of Canada and, most of all Justin Trudeau.
In reality, he needs to say very little about what a “common-sense Conservative government” would do when it “brings it home,” as long as he cranks up the outrage and turbulence all the way to election day.
But while the housing issue is not going away, another of Poilievre’s hot-button issues may not be the mania of the moment in the second half of next year: inflation.
The Conservative leader is unlikely to soften his “axe the tax” campaign, noting at his press conference that the new cost-of-living numbers showed that Manitoba and Saskatchewan saw big falls in inflation after ditching the carbon tax. Manitoba introduced a 14-cents-a-litre gas-tax holiday and saw its annual inflation rate drop to 0.8 per cent in January, while Saskatchewan removed the federal carbon tax from home heating fuel and saw its inflation rate fall to 1.9 per cent, down from 2.7 per cent in December.
But, with the consumer price index at a relatively benign rate of 2.9 per cent last month, we are unlikely to see grocery bills soaring or food bank use increasing, as we did last year.
It is as well for the Conservative leader that there remains a housing affordability problem, or as he put it in typically understated style: “the nightmare that Justin Trudeau has unleashed.”
National Post
jivison@criffel.ca
Postmedia is committed to maintaining a lively but civil forum for discussion and encourage all readers to share their views on our articles. Comments may take up to an hour for moderation before appearing on the site. We ask you to keep your comments relevant and respectful. We have enabled email notifications—you will now receive an email if you receive a reply to your comment, there is an update to a comment thread you follow or if a user you follow comments. Visit our Community Guidelines for more information and details on how to adjust your email settings.
Options according to space, budget and preferences
Roxy Earle has created the ultimate vacation collection for Joe Fresh.
Avril Lavigne, Hozier and Luke Bryan are on sale now
From a wear-everywhere bag to workhorse blue jeans, here are five in-demand fashion pieces that are on trend — and on budget.
From reusable to a 24K option, plus a biodegradable option that dissolves in water
login
who are we?
contact us
qosheapp
Toi Staff
Gideon Levy
Belen Fernandez
Andrew Mitrovica
Mort Laitner
Nikkei Editorial
Rami G Khouri
Ali Fathollah-Nejad
visit website
