The People's Party of Canada’s Confused Priorities

The People’s Party of Canada has got mixed up confusion about the fundamental needs of Canada. Amongst a landscape of war and crisis they attempt to restrict people seeking refugee status and immigrants seeking a better life. Should this be Canada’s priority amongst a labor shortage in an underpopulated country?

Over 12 Million Ukranians have fled their homes due to the war with Russia. That number continues to grow as Russia’s invasion does not relent. Around half of the the displaced have chosen to remain in Ukraine, either moving farther inward or to neighboring countries. The other half remains displaced inside the country, either taking up arms against the invaders, or seeking refugee status. This adds to the global refugee count the United Nations estimates is around 82 Million people. Around half of these displaced people are under the age of 18. Approximately 12,000 Ukranians have been able to relocate to Canada through traditional immagration means since January, but another 60,000 have applied on a 3 year work or school visa.

Canada proudly accepts around 350,000 immigrants each year. In addition to this, around 19,000 privately sponsored refugees seek safety within Canada’s borders. They receive 6 months of private funding and 6 months of government support. Multiculturalism has been a goal Canadian society has been working towards for many decades. The People’s Party wishes to lower the number of immigrants and refugees by 250,000 people to around 100,000 “Depending on economic circumstances.” In addition to this, the People’s Party pledges to “Take Canada out of the UN’s Global Compact for Migration.” This would undo the first ever inter-government agreement, the aims of which are to make humanitarian efforts more effective, and prioritizes helping internally displaced people (people who have lost their homes but remain in their country.) It also aids with mobility of displaced persons and getting them to safety via cooperating countries. In addition to removing Canada from the Compact, the People’s Party wishes to distance Canada with the United Nations refugee program in general, as well as to “Stop our reliance on the United Nations for refugee selection.” The People’s Party does not wish for this because they want freedom to pick their own refugees, they wish to “Accept fewer resettled refugees” period. Finally, The People’s Party wishes to abolish the family reunification act, preventing parents and grandparents from being able to see their children.

The People’s Party wishes to restrict the flow of people in and out of Canada, even people applying for work visas just to escape a war torn country. On Top of this, Canada is underpopulated (see graph), and this issue will continue to worsen with time as baby boomers age. A high percentage of the population is either too young or too old to work, and require support. If the number of people requiring support outgrows the working population then it will lead to a decline in the economy and eventually risk a collapse. The way to combat this issue that has been facing Canada for generations is to increase the working age population. How? There is a sea of immigrants and refugees knocking at the doorstep. Restricting mobility will only lead to more problems in the long run. In addition to this, Canada is currently facing a labor shortage in a landscape of an economy ravaged by the pandemic. There are almost 1 Million open positions available across Canada. Businesses desperately need workers, especially after jobs lost from the Covid-19 Pandemic. There are almost 60,000 people applying for work visas from Ukraine alone, surely that would help with filling out Canada’s population pyramid. Why does the People’s Party see it in the best interest of Canada to restrict the immigration of these peoples? (Graph Source: CIA World Factbook)

In conclusion, the People’s Party of Canada has put its own agendas of ending multiculturalism above the needs of the Country itself. More working age people are needed in Canada for a multitude of reasons, and those people are on our doorstep asking to come in. The People’s Party deems it in the best interest of Canada to turn these people away, wishing to select Canadian born people for jobs. With 1 Million Job openings, and the dependent sector of the population only increasing, action must be taken quickly. Canada’s population scale itself is not balanced, and will tip should it not be filled out. Immigrants and Refugees would balance this scale, as they bring families full of people of all ages to contribute to Canadian society, and contributing to the cultural melting pot that makes up Canada.