Canada’s immigration numbers are growing so fast that by 2041, over half of those in the country may be immigrants and their Canadian-born children, Statistics Canada predicts.
The country’s population
increased by over 430,000 during the third quarter of 2023, according to StatCan. That’s the fastest pace of growth since 1957. About 313,000 of those were non-permanent residents who came to Canada to work or study.
StatCan
reported that the country’s population is the fastest growing in the G7, and ranks seventh in the G20. The country’s population now sits at over 40 million, StatCan says.
“In 2021, more than 8.3 million people, or almost one-quarter (23.0 percent) of the population, were, or had ever been, a landed immigrant or permanent resident in Canada,” one StatCan report
said. “This was the largest proportion since Confederation, topping the previous 1921 record of 22.3 percent, and the highest among the G7.”
Statistics Canada
predicts that by 2041, the number of immigrants and their Canadian-born children in Canada could be 52.4 percent or 25 million out of the 47.7 million forecasted population for the country. In comparison, this group consisted of 14.4 million people or 40.0 percent of the Canadian population in 2016.
The StatCan numbers were
analyzed by the Association for Canadian Studies (ACS), a think tank based in Montreal, which noted that the number of individuals who are from a visible minority has increased to one in four, compared with one in 20 in the 1980s.
In Toronto, minorities already make up 59 percent of the population, while in Vancouver that percentage is 58, ACS said.
There has also been an increase in the indigenous population, according to the report.
“Indigenous populations are increasing and representing a larger share of the population. In 2021, First Nations, Inuit, and Métis accounted for 5 percent of the Canadian population, up from less than 3 percent in the mid-1990s.”
As the demographics change in Canada, so too does the notion of what it means to be Canadian, ACS said.
“Data tells us that while we may be increasingly diverse in a growing number of ways with potential challenges to social cohesion, Canadians continue to stand united in the fundamental values of equality and protection of human rights,” the report authors said. “With it, there is a mutual respect and responsibility to uphold these values. It is perhaps these shared values, combined with our diversity, that makes Canada stand out internationally, and what defines us as Canadians.”
Impact on Housing
As the population grows, so too does the demand for affordable housing options.Bank of Canada deputy governor Toni Gravelle noted the effect of immigration on the economy and inflation in a recent speech to the Windsor-Essex Regional Chamber of Commerce.
Mr. Gravelle acknowledged the benefits from a growth in immigration, particularly on the economy, as well as helping to expand the workforce and counteract an aging population.
However, he said it’s also adding pressure to the country’s housing market.
“This jump in demographic demand coupled with the existing structural supply issues could explain why rent inflation continues to climb in Canada. It also helps explain, in part, why housing prices have not fallen as much as we had expected,” Mr. Gravelle said.
A recent
Leger poll found that many Canadians are concerned about the negative impact that immigration is having on the country, with 75 percent saying they believe it is contributing to the housing crisis.
Seventy-three percent said immigrants are adding pressure to the health care system, and 63 percent said it puts added pressure on the school system.
The number of those who wanted to see more immigration dropped from 17 percent in 2022 to 9 percent this year, the survey found. Thirty-nine percent said they’d like to see fewer immigrations move to Canada, and 43 percent said they’d like the number to stay the same.
The Canadian Press contributed to this report.
