Standing in Canada’s House of Commons in 2023, the then-prime minister, Justin Trudeau, gave an impassioned speech on the value of welcoming newcomers.
“Canadians know that immigration is one of our greatest assets. It helps us compete,” he said. “If we want to boost our economic success significantly, we need to boost immigration.”
A year later, however, as public views soured on what had long been a bedrock of Canada’s economic growth toolbox, Trudeau pledged to cut the number of international students coming to the country and made changes to a controversial program that relied on migrant workers for agricultural jobs and the fast-food industry.
His immigration minister said the volume of people arriving was “overheated” and pledged to “infuse some discipline” into its handling of the immigration file.
13:00 Why is anti-immigrant sentiment on the rise in Canada? – video
By the time Trudeau’s successor, Mark Carney, won a spring election this year, the Liberals, in powe
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