SoVote

Context: House Hansard - 243 - Oct/31/23

Oct/31/23 12:56:01 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I really appreciate my esteemed colleague's question because my riding of Sherbrooke is indeed a welcoming place. Every year, many immigrants settle there. Thanks to organizations that work hard to help them integrate and feel welcome, we have managed to achieve that objective. I see it when I visit hospitals, the Maison Aube-Lumière palliative care facility, schools and day care centres. A woman from Colombia works in the new bakery that just opened and she sells baked goods from her culture. It gives us an opportunity to discover wonderful things.

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Mr. Francesco Sorbara (Vaughan—Woodbridge, Lib.)

Oct/31/23 12:56:52 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I am pleased to rise in the House to speak to the opposition motion. I think it is important to point out a few things. First, the government held in-depth consultations on the immigration levels, as it does every year. In particular, we spoke with partner organizations, such as settlement groups; the provincial and territorial ministers responsible for immigration, including the Quebec minister; municipalities from across the country; economic stakeholders, including businesses that use our programs to fill job vacancies; and other federal departments with related policies or issues to examine. That is not an exhaustive list, but it shows that our plans are supported by consultations on immigration levels that are held throughout the year. Furthermore, this year, we held even more consultations across the country. In recent months our government organized in-person and online consultations countrywide to talk about the future of immigration in Canada. Many factors must be considered when planning immigration levels. For example, the population is aging. The 2021 census revealed that, without immigration, our population could decline. There is also worldwide competition for talent. A number of western countries are facing similar challenges to ours along with a growing demand for qualified workers in technology, the trades and health care. Regional and labour market needs are also changing. The priority of the provinces, territories and municipalities can change month to month and year to year. Our social infrastructure is also under pressure. Nearly all provinces and territories need more nurses and health professionals to meet the needs of Canadians. Lastly, there is a growing demand for refugee programs. There are nearly 100 million displaced people worldwide. Canada has a moral obligation to act and to respect its humanitarian commitments. That is why, in recent years, we have welcomed newcomers from Ukraine and Afghanistan. These are some of the priorities that guide our planning of immigration levels. Many of these concerns were raised during our in-depth consultations with our provincial and territorial partners. Over the past year, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada held extensive consultations. Besides discussions in major centres like Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver and Halifax, we also organized regional dialogue sessions in Dieppe and Saskatoon. Furthermore, we organized a virtual session with the territories to better understand the challenges faced by Canadians in the north. Senior public servants, many of whom are ministers with various portfolios, discussed what our future immigration might look like and how we could adapt to better meet the needs of employers, communities and migrants who would like to settle in these areas. Concerning immigration, I would also like to point out that Canada works in close collaboration with Quebec and ensures that newcomers have the tools they need to succeed on their arrival. Under the Canada-Quebec accord relating to immigration, Quebec has rights and responsibilities with respect to the number of immigrants arriving in Quebec and their selection and integration. We work closely with Quebec and key stakeholders to ensure that the province's immigration levels meet labour market demands, and that the province has the tools it needs to welcome newcomers. Under the Canada–Quebec accord on immigration, Canada sets the annual number of immigrants for the country, taking into account the number of immigrants that Quebec wishes to welcome. In preparation for the immigration levels plan, which must be tabled by the Minister of Immigration by November 1 at the latest, the minister met with Quebec's minister of immigration, as well as key organizations in the province, such as The Refugee Centre. The government works extensively with the provinces and territories on immigration. We have also had talks with important social and cultural groups to examine how immigration responds to their needs. For example, francophone immigration increased to reach 16,300 French-speaking newcomers outside Quebec in 2022, three times more than in 2018. However, the demographic weight of official language minority communities continued to decrease in the latest census. We reached the target of 4.4% francophone immigration outside Quebec in 2022, ahead of schedule. Immigration will help us strengthen and support francophone communities across the country. Our government has committed to presenting another five-year plan to support francophone immigration in the years ahead. We have also increased investments and settlement agency services. This capacity building helps support newcomers and communities. For example, thanks to improved accessibility and expanded coverage of settlement services offered by francophone service providers, the percentage of francophone newcomers served by francophone agencies rose from 44% in 2018 to more than 60% in 2022-23. Rural and northern communities also shared with us their economic and social needs in terms of workers and newcomers. During our consultations, we also contacted indigenous representatives to seek their opinions on the future of immigration. Young people also shared their unique point of view. We also heard from current and former clients of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. In total, 17,500 contributions were received from more than 2,000 organizations as well as from Canadians, newcomers and clients across the country. In general terms, what Canadians told us is that they appreciate what newcomers bring to Canada, their entrepreneurial spirit, and their commitment to Canada and our communities. They know that immigration contributes to supporting our economy, filling jobs and supporting our social programs. That is why Canadians support immigration. They see the face of immigration every day, whether in a neighbour, a friend, a family member or a co-worker. The minister recently acknowledged before the Standing Committee on Citizenship and Immigration that there is an urgent need to review communities' capacity to welcome newcomers and ensure that they have adequate housing and access to social services. It is our duty to make sure that newcomers get what they need to succeed when they arrive in Canada. As the minister said, we know that the housing problems we face today are rooted in broader issues. The minister indicated that he was aware of the need to align immigration with other plans, while also meeting our humanitarian commitments. It is also important to note that immigration is part of the solution, not the problem, when it comes to housing in this country. We need talented, hard-working newcomers from around the world to address labour shortages in the construction sector. I am pleased to report that, thanks to programs like category-based selection under express entry, we are now welcoming newcomers with the sought-after skills we need—

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The Assistant Deputy Speaker (Mrs. Alexandra Mendès)

Oct/31/23 1:07:02 p.m.
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Unfortunately, I must interrupt the hon. member, as it is now time for questions and comments. The hon. member for Jonquière.

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Mr. Mario Simard (Jonquière, BQ)

Oct/31/23 1:07:10 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, in case a consultation is requested with Quebec, I would point out to my colleague that the fiscal imbalance is a fundamental problem in the Canadian federation. Ottawa has the means to fund big expenditures such as health and education, while the provinces have the jurisdiction. Welcoming more migrants requires a more robust health care system, education system and access to housing. The federal government has the capacity to pay, but it tends to be cheap. Based on the latest negotiation on health care, we can see that the federal government is often cheap. This is the same federal government that just set immigration targets, putting unsustainable pressure on the provinces. Is my colleague aware of that?

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Mr. Francesco Sorbara

Oct/31/23 1:08:02 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, my colleague and I work together at the Standing Committee on Natural Resources. Our government supported all the provinces and territories on health. It supports them on immigration to Canada. We work together with the Province of Quebec. We are there every year to support immigration to the member's province.

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Mrs. Karen Vecchio (Elgin—Middlesex—London, CPC)

Oct/31/23 1:08:36 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I am really glad the member got up to speak about this. What I have really noticed in my riding of Elgin—Middlesex—London, which is in the midst of southwestern Ontario, is extraordinary caseloads. I recognize that the government tries to go from one place to another, but I am wondering about that. I have a really weird file. In less than eight months, I had a citizenship approved, but unfortunately the files were separated and the rest of the family could not find the files anymore. I am wondering what the member has to say about his government when it comes to the fact that over the last eight years, we have seen reunification more than double in some cases. I did immigration for 11 years. I can say that immigration from inside and outside of Canada has expanded and grown significantly. What does he have to say about the fact that, when people are being processed, some are not being processed together and we are having real issues there? What are the Liberals doing to fix that?

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Mr. Francesco Sorbara

Oct/31/23 1:09:38 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, when we came to power in 2015, we invested in the immigration system. However, before that, the Conservatives had cut, cut, cut, and the waiting lines in the immigration system were very long. We invested and reduced those waiting lines. It is good to see that millions of people around the world want to come to Canada. It is an attractive place to live. It is, I would say, the best country in the world. We know that, and all MPs here have unique cases that we have to deal with day in and day out. There are means of getting assistance, and I encourage the member opposite to do so. I would be happy to help if I can.

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Mr. Chad Collins (Hamilton East—Stoney Creek, Lib.)

Oct/31/23 1:10:36 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I think it is very appropriate that my friend and colleague referenced our support for Ukraine. We are almost up to 200,000 refugees coming from Ukraine who fled the war and Russia's illegal invasion, but we are starting to see some cracks in the support for Ukraine. We are seeing this with right-wing Conservative governments across the world. There is the possible return of Trump, with his obvious support for Putin and his open declaration that he and the Republican Party will not support Ukraine. The Leader of the Opposition, of course, has been very quiet on this subject. I wonder if my friend and colleague could speak to the importance of our government's continued support for Ukraine and its people.

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Mr. Francesco Sorbara

Oct/31/23 1:11:22 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I would simply like to say that we must support the people of Ukraine. We need to support the country of Ukraine and its people for their freedom, their territorial integrity and their sovereignty. I know that all Canadians stand behind the brave Ukrainian people. They are not just fighting for their freedom and democracy. They are fighting for ours and that of all democratic countries around the world. Those are values we share as a country and a people.

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Mr. Yves-François Blanchet (Beloeil—Chambly, BQ)

Oct/31/23 1:12:06 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I would like to begin by reading out the motion again. Its simplicity conveys the essence of the message we want to send to Quebec, but also to the entire territory represented by members of the House. That the House call on the government to review its immigration targets starting in 2024, after consultation with Quebec, the provinces and territories, based on their integration capacity, particularly in terms of housing, health care, education, French language training and transportation infrastructure, all with a view to successful immigration. Over the next few minutes, the relevance of the year 2024 will become clear. The motion's key words are “successful immigration”. I like to think that, in these matters, our position is akin to that of Quebeckers, and maybe even to that of Canadians, judging by recent polls and numbers. I personally believe that Quebeckers do not identify with any extreme. I will not go into too much detail because I want everyone to remain in good spirits. Suffice it to say that some extremes have very few supporters. Between both extremes, there are people who are not loud or spectacular enough to attract much attention from the media. We identify with those people a lot more. We hope that these people also identify with the Bloc Québécois a lot more, which explains the consensual wording of the motion. We will see how consensual it is come voting time. I think the matter of immigration must be approached dispassionately. Seeing that the Bloc Québécois was raising the issue of immigration, the media expected fireworks. That was definitely not our intent when drafting and tabling the motion. Voters are calling on us to do something. A growing number of voters and people across Canada are getting more and more concerned. They are not anti-immigration, they are not vindictive and they do not have a negative attitude. They are expressing concern about the fact that the process Canada is using to accept immigrants greatly exceeds the actual capacity of Canada, Quebec, the provinces and territories to welcome them—I will come back to that—and their ability to adapt to this new reality. More and more people are being born into this world and, to them, it feels like the world is getting smaller and smaller. However, each year, in the span of just a few months, the world's population consumes all the renewable resources and lives for the rest of the year on ecological credit with climate change and many violent clashes. My esteemed colleague referred to Ukraine and Ukrainian refugees only a few minutes ago. People will migrate. People will move away, hoping for a better life. I submit to the House that the well-being of those who come to a new place in search of a better life for themselves and their families must be the primary objective of any decent immigration policy. This is not to be confused with the anti-immigration stance some say Quebec is displaying. That kind of talk has died down somewhat because, now that Toronto and Vancouver are worried, Quebec has a right to be. In reality, people want a better understanding or need to feel that they will adapt to all of this and that public finances will as well. Ottawa is backing itself into a corner by diving headfirst into this kind of postnational, multiculturalist philosophy where identities are blurred, undefined, sometimes non-existent or deliberately non-existent. Canada has every right to do that, but Quebec does not have to make that same mistake. How can Canada claim to be the welcoming land it aspires to be when its capacity to provide basic services is crumbling? Looking at it from here, from the federal Parliament, it looks easy. However, it is the provinces and Quebec that are getting stuck with the bill for the vulnerable workforce that, at times, the Liberals and Conservatives used to share. That may be about to change. We must have the courage to try something different and acknowledge the failure. We must have the courage to acknowledge that Quebeckers and Canadians are worried. This demands that we propose a different approach, based on a different set of measurements and a different vision. It also demands ways to measure success. Immigration is not measured by the number of people who enter a territory. Success itself is the measure of immigration success, hence the Bloc Québécois's new propensity to talk about “successful immigration”. That has to be measurable. At the moment, the tools needed to take such measurements do not seem to exist. How many people hold a decent job that will match their qualifications and life plans after one, two or five years? How many people who have chosen to live in Quebec, or who are living in Quebec after arriving through immigration channels, are adequately or even minimally proficient in French after one, three or five years? How many people who arrive here as asylum seekers will be sleeping on the streets of Toronto, Montreal or Vancouver this winter with no fixed address? These kinds of measurements are not available to us, but we believe they are necessary if we want to determine whether immigration, as it is practised in Canada, is or is not a success. Canada will have no moral authority to discuss immigration or the success of immigration in numbers rather than as a welcoming country until its own first nations live in conditions of safety, prosperity, opportunity, security or cultural continuity that Canada does not currently offer them. There is a kind of problem with moral authority that is lacking. Do we focus too much on numbers? I think so. Is that the definition of successful immigration? I do not think so. We will therefore continue to push this concept. Not so long ago, as I mentioned, doubts about immigration were associated with xenophobia or racism. I am confident that this is now a thing of the past. It was harmful, unhealthy and, at times, decidedly malicious. Now that public opinion throughout Canada is evolving, reflecting and asking questions, we have moved on. Of course, in Quebec, there will still be a single variable. Quebec is the only society on this continent, apart from the United States and Canada, that defines itself as a nation. It is a territory, a history, a set of values, an economic model and, in support, of course, a language. However, a major paradigm shift is taking place. It has to do with looking at immigration through the prism of economics, as well as roles and responsibilities. It was presented to us as a need, an ambition. The goal is 100 million Canadians by the year 2100. It has been said and could be said again, and we will see after the vote, that Canada wants to welcome immigrants for its own sake, somewhat selfishly, to keep its economy going. Of course, immigration brings people here, people who will be workers and will be happy to work. However, should we look at immigration primarily through the prism of a labour supply that, if only because of sheer numbers, will be more vulnerable? I think we need to look at immigration from the perspective of what we are offering as a nation to those who choose to come to Canada or Quebec, on this planet that I described as too small. We need to look at immigration in terms of those who migrate, those who flee, those who dream of something better, those who are migrants before they are immigrants. Migrants do not tend to join the workforce right off the bat. They are people who hope for something better. We have the duty to provide them with that. We need to make this type of immigration successful in both Quebec and Canada. If Quebec's model is different, then so be it. The Canadian and Quebec models still have some commonalities. They are subject to the same risks. The planet seems to be getting smaller. People are going to move. Quebec and Canada will welcome some of those people. We must not be blind in our approach. No one, neither Canadians nor Quebeckers, intends for national cultures to disappear. What we need is to grasp the concepts of successful integration, contribution and the emergence of national cultures that are not made up entirely of the cultures of the immigrant communities nor of those of the host community. That creates a different substrate that evolves and improves while maintaining some fundamental things in common. In Quebec at least, those things are the French language, certain values, secular government institutions, and a much more environmentally friendly approach than is found in most other places, particularly Canada. The parties trying to deny Quebec those things are out of touch with reality. There is also another factor to consider. There are real economic issues. Let us go over a few figures that, thanks to Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada, are rough estimates. We understand that Canada's goal is to accept 500,000 immigrants through the so-called regular process by 2025. There was a bit of speculation as to whether there would be slightly fewer in 2026. The minister was rather vague on this point. Lowering this number by 30,000 immigrants would not change much. It would not change much because it is still the smallest segment of the total number of people who either will immigrate this year to Canada, including Quebec, or who do not have regularized or permanent status. These include 800,000 international students. Unfortunately, when it comes to international students, francophone African students are still experiencing vicious discrimination that hurts them and francophone universities alike. There are tens of thousands of temporary foreign workers here, roughly 80,000 to 90,000, who are more than welcome. There may be as many as one million people that the government has completely lost track of. Nobody knows for sure where they are. There may be over 300,000 in Quebec alone. Adding it all up, even using conservative estimates, means that there are over two million people in Canada who are either immigrants this year or who have no established, fixed or permanent status. Even if this number were reduced by 30,000, the impact would be relatively moderate. What do we have to offer that is better than going into hiding for so many of them, better than homelessness for still too many of them, better than a tenuous livelihood and falling prey to businesses that will not hesitate to exploit these people's vulnerability? There is also an impact on government services. In the area of health, which is a provincial jurisdiction, the necessary transfers are still being withheld because Ottawa wants to impose centralizing conditions. There is the impact of the additional pressure on an education system that is already experiencing quite a few problems that people will try to address with long overdue investments that should have been dealt with sooner. Child care will, of course, be under pressure. The social safety net is one more issue. I mentioned homelessness earlier. Of course, public transit is also under pressure. To add to all this, there is the simple fact that the Department of Immigration has well over a million files waiting to be processed. Let us give these poor people a break. Then there is the housing crisis. Some things are beyond our control, but others are not. We must, of course, refrain from blaming anyone, and I think that everyone is refraining from that. The more people we have, the more it will contribute to a housing crisis that has been created or exacerbated by other causes. Some things are beyond our control, but others are not. The number of people we take in is something that is appropriate for us to control. The type of housing that will be offered to reduce the pressure on the housing stock is something that can reasonably be controlled. It is a question of labour, but it is also a question of prices. I only want to mention this quickly, because I imagine he has realized it, but, not that long ago, the Minister of Immigration was telling us that these people are going to immigrate to Canada, get to work and build their own homes. The week after that, I hope they are going to build their own hospitals, their own schools, their own public transit and their own sewage systems. They are going to have work to do when they get to Canada. That is not the way to run a common-sense immigration policy. There is also an economic impact on inflation. It has to be said. Again, it would be a stretch to blame immigration for inflation. However, it would be inappropriate not to go through the steps of a purely mathematical calculation to determine the pace, number and impact that this may have. There is something to consider there, too. On the economic front, one of the issues I raise most often is recognizing credentials. Highly qualified people arrive from abroad, wanting to make a life for themselves in Quebec and Canada, but their credentials are not recognized. They end up taking jobs that, as I said, are more fragile and vulnerable. That is not what we want. When I talk about economic integration in Quebec, I always mention language. Our first duty and responsibility in Quebec when we welcome someone is to give them the fundamental tool they need to happily and harmoniously integrate into Quebec society. That tool is, of course, knowledge of the French language. When people from the Century Initiative or McKinsey or other advisers around the Prime Minister's Office created projections or fantasized about having a population of 100 million Canadians by the end of the century, they did not consider French as a variable. I asked Mr. Barton, and he answered candidly that they just did not look at this issue and it did not exist for them. I have the impression that they are stuck in that mindset. We will have to make it clear that the long-term survival of French matters. Finally, as far as foreign students are concerned, I think that we should listen to the point of view of the countries they come from. These countries are happy that their students are looking for training here. They are happy when the students who receive training here return home and contribute to the development of their society. They generally accept that a certain number of them decide to integrate into society in the place where they received training. It is not up to us to unilaterally decide that issue. We must listen to the countries these students come from. We need to rethink the paradigms, stop with the accusations and epithets, recognize the role of the provinces and Quebec, and renounce the terrible impact of the fiscal imbalance, which is preventing the provinces from adequately funding services. We cannot deny the singular effect of all this in Quebec, but this does give us an opportunity to restore people's confidence. Successful immigration would replace purely quantitative immigration, which weighs on the state, the economy and the well-being of applicants. So-called postnationalism means the end of identities and of the diversity that communities care about more than the unique traits often asserted under a disembodied charter. Canada may not want to be a responsible society in how it welcomes immigrants, but Quebec can be and wants to be that society. Despite everything, and regardless of the outcome of the vote on this motion, I must point out that it would be so much healthier and simpler if we each had our own policies on immigration and everything else.

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Mr. Kevin Lamoureux (Parliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons, Lib.)

Oct/31/23 1:31:17 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I am not aware of any provincial jurisdiction in Canada that says Canada needs to allow fewer immigrants into the country, not officially at least. I have not heard that. I am curious as to whether the leader of the Bloc Party is aware of any provinces in Canada that have taken the line that we are allowing too many immigrants into the country. What I often hear is that we have a huge shortage of labour, particularly in the health care field. The member talked about credentials. One of my greatest frustrations is that barriers are put in place, usually through provinces and organizations within the provinces, to prevent credentials from being recognized. I am thinking specifically of health care workers, who seem to be in demand in every province in Canada. Could he expand on what he believes is necessary in order to get credentials recognized? At the same time, could he indicate to me any province that says fewer immigrants should be coming to Canada?

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Mr. Yves-François Blanchet

Oct/31/23 1:32:32 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I am sure you would not give me all of the time I would need to treat my esteemed colleague to the full answer to that question. That being said, I, too, am frustrated about something. After what I just said, it seems to me that this would have been a good time to make an effort to ask me a question in French. It is rather unbelievable. Are there other Canadian provinces that think we should be welcoming fewer immigrants? I will simply express a legitimate concern that Quebeckers' have that has nothing to do with the number of immigrants. I have said on multiple occasions that I think it is rather ridiculous to bicker over numbers. Our concern has to do with the successful integration of immigrants in both Quebec and Canada and the doubts we have about that happening. In Quebec, there is also the language variable and the fact that we are a distinct nation. Everyone shares that valid concern and the government should take note of it.

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Mr. Tom Kmiec (Calgary Shepard, CPC)

Oct/31/23 1:33:29 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I would like to respond to the comments made by the leader of the Bloc Québécois. Behind all the numbers there are families, people who came to Canada or are waiting for permission to come to be reunited with their family, as was the case for members of my family. However, the numbers also count for something. Since 2015, the number of departmental employees working on backlogged applications, which were already in the millions, has doubled. Just before the pandemic, there were 1.9 million backlogged applications from people who wanted to come to Canada or who were already in Canada but wanted to change their precarious temporary foreign worker status to permanent resident status and, of course, to one day become Canadian citizens. The number of people working in the department has doubled. Today, it has 12,721 employees to do the work. The number of backlogged applications keeps going up. The number of directors at the department has risen from 135 to 237 and the applications are still backlogged. I think a basic principle needs to be followed here: If a person submits an application to a department, they should receive a service. People should not be left to wait for years with a precarious status. I would like to hear the Bloc member's views on that.

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Mr. Yves-François Blanchet

Oct/31/23 1:35:00 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I am not sure whether the member wants to hear my views. He had his own case to make. That said, the observation about the Department of Citizenship and Immigration is very real and very relevant. All of these people come to Quebec and to Canada in search of a better life but are forced to endure unreasonable waiting times because of an overloaded machine. The size of this machine has ballooned a lot faster than the people brought on board could be trained to run it. These people are also expected to follow directives that will place the Department of Citizenship and Immigration under even more pressure. That in itself is reason for the government to take a big step back and get control of the rate of integration, intake and granting of permanent resident status for people who choose to settle in Canada or Quebec.

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Mr. Alain Therrien (La Prairie, BQ)

Oct/31/23 1:36:03 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I commend the work and speech of my colleague, the leader of the Bloc Québécois. We often simplify things, and the Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship did so by saying that immigrants arrive here and build their own homes. I have a problem with that, because the issue of integration capacity goes further than that. It is not simply a matter of labour. There is a town in my riding that has no more water. There is a moratorium in place, and not a single new home can be built there. Yes, there is a need to build more housing, but there is also infrastructure that cannot be neglected either. That is part of integration capacity. Another town in my riding is a farming community. This town has protected farmland where housing cannot be built. This is called green zoning. The town has no more lots where housing can be built, which we call white zoning. What can we do if we want to build housing to accommodate more people? My question is simple. When talking about integration capacity, are we also talking about infrastructure or land that is managed, in the case of Quebec, by the Quebec government?

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Mr. Yves-François Blanchet

Oct/31/23 1:37:13 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, we have to talk about everything. We absolutely have to talk about the consequences of having roughly two million immigrants with no specific status in a population of 40 million. I will bring up housing as an example. Recently, we saw a debate about a legislative slap on the wrist for municipalities that engage in odd zoning practices or that did not subject themselves to federal government rules that have nothing to do with municipalities. It is as though the government is putting pressure on municipalities—which have the problems my esteemed colleague described—although they are the most ill-equipped to manage it because their tax base is tightly controlled and they have very little leeway. Immigration is a fundamental policy, and the immigration policy of a country of Canada's demographic or economic stature requires a global vision. From our perspective, there also needs to be a vision for Quebec's policy, for the country it should be.

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Mrs. Brenda Shanahan (Châteauguay—Lacolle, Lib.)

Oct/31/23 1:38:23 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague for his speech and today's motion. I am very proud of the integration efforts we have been seeing in my riding, Châteauguay—Lacolle, for some time now. We have a labour shortage, and everyone is very grateful. Quebec has imposed a limit for family reunification. I would like my colleague to comment on that problem. People in my riding—francophone Quebeckers—are waiting for their husbands and wives. Obviously they will have homes. Many of them already have jobs. If these people could come here, that would be wonderful, but apparently the quota for 2023 has been met.

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Mr. Yves-François Blanchet

Oct/31/23 1:39:22 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, the member's question should have been addressed to her federal colleague, because family reunification is a federal matter. However, what I would say is that family reunification is one of the priority criteria for immigration to Canada and Quebec. That is obvious for humanitarian and basic reasons. As to the specific issues in my colleague's riding, there are indeed labour problems. Those problems exist in her riding and elsewhere because it is a highly agricultural riding. It is important to have an all-encompassing vision for immigration policy that is not focused solely on as many as possible, as fast as possible, with no consideration for the rest.

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Mr. Sukh Dhaliwal (Surrey—Newton, Lib.)

Oct/31/23 1:40:19 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I would love to wish all the kids and families in Surrey—Newton, and from coast to coast to coast, a happy Halloween. Enjoy the tricks and treats. As an immigrant, I support the motion brought forward by the Bloc Québécois. I am pleased today to rise in the House and share my time with an honourable member, who I believed in before he was elected in the by-election. I remember that snowy day in Manitoba when I was there helping my dear friend. He is one of the hardest working members of Parliament. Particularly when it comes to immigrant communities, the work he does is unparalleled. That member is the hon. member for Winnipeg North, with whom I will be sharing my time. Let me share some of the key facts with regard to Canada’s immigration levels, as well as consultations with Quebec. Tomorrow, the Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship is set to share with the House the immigration levels for the upcoming years. When it comes to welcoming newcomers to Canada, we know that they support our economy and contribute meaningfully to our communities. Our population is aging as is our workforce. To ensure that we can maintain the social services Canadians rely on, we need more people working to address current labour shortages across the country. As such, permanent immigration is vital to Canada’s long-term economic growth. It accounts for almost 100% of our labour force growth and, by 2032, it is projected to account for 100% of our population growth. With countless newcomers currently working in the health care field, construction or filling important roles for small and medium-sized businesses across the country, we cannot minimize the importance of immigration and newcomers to Canada’s economy and future growth. With regard to the opposition motion at hand, we undergo consultations every year with provincial and territorial partners, including Quebec, employers and relevant stakeholders, to ensure our immigration levels plan is aligned with the current realities of the labour market, while also ensuring that newcomers have the resources and tools they need to thrive and contribute meaningfully to their new communities. Of course, this includes working with our colleagues in the Quebec government. Under the Canada–Québec accord on immigration, Quebec has the responsibility of setting the number of immigrants destined to Quebec and the selection, reception and integration of those immigrants. To be very clear, we work in close partnership with Quebec on all things related to immigration. In addition to conversations the Minister of Immigration had with his Quebec counterpart, the Minister of Immigration has also had conversations with his colleagues in provinces and territories throughout Canada. Ultimately, the successful arrival and integration of newcomers to our country requires a team Canada approach. The dialogue on immigration happens with officials from different levels of governments through events and conferences and through official consultations. Every year, after these broad consultations, and considering the data at hand, the government tables a levels plan. It used to be that the levels plan was just for one year, but the current three-year levels plan allows the federal government and provincial partners, as well as those in our settlement sectors, a better planning horizon. This allows us to respond to the current needs of the country, while adapting for the future. In addition to our annual levels consultation, we have recently been receiving input from provinces and stakeholders under our strategic immigration review, which is looking at what changes we might need to make to ensure we have an immigration system that meets the current and future needs of our country. Those consultations have stressed the need to work in close collaboration with many partners on immigration to ensure we are meeting the needs of our economy and our communities. The federal government, provinces and territories all agree that bright and talented newcomers are essential to Canada’s current and future economic growth. That means we must align our immigration priorities with critical services, such as housing and infrastructure. I would like to share with the members opposite that we have made historic housing investments in Quebec. Since 2015, we have invested to help more than 445,000 Quebeckers obtain affordable housing. Thanks to a bilateral agreement between Canada and Quebec, we will see a combined investment of an additional $3.7 billion over the next 10 years to improve housing in Quebec. These are the critical investments we are making to not only ensure that Quebeckers have a safe and affordable place to live, but it also helps ensure that when newcomers arrive, they have the resources they need to build their new lives in Canada. However, make no mistake that newcomers are not the cause of our current housing situation in Canada. They are part of the solution. In order for these investments to manifest into real, safe and affordable housing, we need bright, talented and skilled newcomers to come to Canada and build homes throughout the country. That is exactly what we are doing. Thanks to changes made to our express entry system, we invited 1,500 trades workers to Canada just this past June. Thanks to the Canadian experience class, the provincial nominee program and the federal skilled trades program, nearly 38,000 tradespersons have obtained permanent residency in Canada. These are individuals with valued experience in construction, who can help address the current labour shortages in the construction industry, so that we can build the homes we need. We are listening to the current challenges of Canadians, newcomers and communities. We are also working alongside provinces, territories and municipalities to strengthen our immigration system so that we can all benefit from immigration. We continue to align our immigration levels to be more responsive to the needs of the labour market, while working closely with provincial and territorial counterparts to ensure newcomers can succeed when they arrive. As my remarks have highlighted today, Canada needs newcomers in order to build a strong, reliable economy that we can all count on.

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Mr. Mario Beaulieu (La Pointe-de-l'Île, BQ)

Oct/31/23 1:50:19 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague for his presentation. The purpose of all federal language policy includes providing support for English in Quebec and ensuring that at least a third of newcomers have access to services in English. Quebec is expected to integrate and provide French language training to 90% of newcomers to maintain its demographic weight. I would like to know whether the government considers it important to take Quebec's and Canada's integration capacity into account. Does my colleague think that Quebec's integration, reception and French language training capacity needs to be taken into account?

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