Recent immigrants to Canada are voicing concerns about high immigration levels and are more likely to support the Conservatives than any other party, according to a recent Leger poll.
Leger’s poll surveyed over 2,100 Canadian adults who immigrated to Canada within the last decade.
Among those surveyed, 42% said that the Liberals’ current immigration plan will result in too many immigrants entering Canada. 34% felt the Liberals’ plan would admit the right amount of immigrants, while 7% said it wouldn’t bring enough immigrants. 17% said they did not know.
The survey question was prefaced by saying that Canada planned to welcome 465,000 immigrants this year, 485,000 in 2024, and 500,000 in 2025. The question said that Canada admitted over 437,000 immigrants in 2022.
However, True North’s Candice Malcolm previously reported that when calculating the amount of temporary foreign workers, international students, and illegal immigrants, Canada brings in about 2.2 million people per year. Even though the poll did not reflect this reality, recent immigrants still felt the 465,000 target was too high than those who agreed with the amount.
“Demographically, Quebec residents are much less likely to believe the current plan will admit too many immigrants (25% vs 45% across all other provinces),” said the survey.
The 42% of recent immigrants who believe the Liberals’ immigration plan is too high is slightly lower than the 50% of Canadians who believe immigration levels are too high, as previously reported by True North.
When asked what political party they agree with most, based on federal political parties’ stances and policies, 24% of recent immigrants said they agree with the Conservatives. This was followed by 22% who agreed most with the Liberals, 8% for the NDP, 3% for the Green Party, 1% for the Bloc Québecois, and 5% of recent immigrants said they’d vote for “someone else” not previously mentioned.
The largest number of recent immigrants said they didn’t know which federal party they agreed with most, at 38%.
True North previously reported that the Conservatives’ immigration formula could result in lower immigration, according to Conservative immigration critic Tom Kmiec.
The Conservatives plan to tie immigration numbers to available jobs and homes in the country. The calculations will involve permanent immigration and temporary resident immigration.
This came just weeks after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau admitted that the “massive spike” in temporary immigration has risen at a rate “far beyond” what the country has been “able to absorb.”
Three in ten recent immigrants to Canada are Canadian citizens. 41% are permanent residents. 16% are work permit holders, while 11% are student permit holders. Only 1% have refugee status. Less than 1% are visa holders and others. 1% of respondents preferred not to say their legal status in Canada.
Most recent immigrants to Canada are highly educated.
79% of respondents had a University degree, while 12% had a College diploma. Only 8% of those who immigrated in the last decade had an education in high school or less.
The survey only allowed two gender options. 47% of respondents were men and 53% were women.
“Immigrants tend to be younger than the Canadian average, with the majority under 55,” said the Leger survey.
43% of respondents were between the ages of 18 and 34. 48% were between the ages of 34 and 54. Only 8% of those surveyed were 55 years or older. Polling Canada’s most recent data shows support for the Conservatives at an all-time high, 20 points ahead of the Liberals. 44% of Canadians intend to vote for the Conservatives, 24% for the Liberals and 17% for the NDP.
