Immigrants prefer Tories to Liberals, think feds letting in too many newcomers: survey

Immigrants in Canada back the Tories over the Liberals and a plurality thinks the feds have got their immigration policy wrong, according to a new poll.

More than four in 10 (42 per cent) newcomers to Canada believe the government will “admit too many immigrants” under its current plans, the survey, by Leger, suggests.

Justin Trudeau said earlier this month that a “massive spike” in immigrants to Canada had “caused so much pressure in our communities” and vowed to limit the number of temporary migrants coming into the country.

Canada’s population grew by 1.27 million people in 2023, according to Statistics Canada. The vast majority (97.6 per cent) of that growth was due to immigration.

But Trudeau also insisted he planned to keep on admitting around half a million permanent residents every year, saying migration on that scale “benefits our citizens, our communities, it benefits our economy.”

There were fewer than 300,000 permanent residents entering Canada each year before Trudeau became prime minister in 2015. Last year, 471,771 arrived.

According to the Leger poll, migrants from Southeast Asia, China and South Asia were most likely to think the current policy admits too many newcomers into Canada.

Migrants in Quebec, however, are much less likely to think that, with only 25 per cent agreeing that too many migrants are being admitted.

The poll also found that the Conservatives are the preferred party for migrants, backed by 24 per cent of respondents. The Liberals came a close second with 22 per cent.

The Tories had their biggest lead among migrants of South Asian and Chinese origin, while the Liberals were comfortably ahead with black migrants.

Black migrants were also most likely to say the current government’s migration plan will “admit the right number of immigrants” and also “not admit enough immigrants.”

Meanwhile close to two thirds – 64 per cent – of Southeast Asian migrants said the plan will bring in too many immigrants.

Leger’s poll was conducted online between Dec. 14, 2023 and Feb. 16, 2024.

It asked questions of 2,104 people aged 18 and older who arrived in Canada over the last 10 years.

The survey can be found here.