North America has long welcomed immigrants and takes pride in its multiculturalism. While many Western countries face criticism for their migration policies, Canada has a reputation as a hospitable and immigrant-friendly nation. Since Justin Trudeau became prime minister in 2015, Canada’s annual immigrant intake has risen from around 300,000 to 400,000 persons. In 2022, the government set an ambitious goal of accepting 500,000 annually by 2025. Despite the record numbers of immigrants since 2019, Canadians continued to hold favorable views of newcomers, according to an Environics poll in 2022. However, in recent years, this goodwill is fading.

In June 2023, Canada’s population reached 40 million, significantly increasing from the previous year. The population grew by over 1 million in a year, with 96% of this increase attributable to immigrants. Although 51% of Canadians still reject the proposition that immigration levels are too high, there has been a noticeable shift. The gap between those who oppose and those who agree has narrowed from 42% to 7% over the past year, marking the most significant change since the Environics Institute began its survey in 1977.

International students and temporary workers have played a significant role in Canada’s recent population growth, contributing to nearly 3 million citizens with temporary residence permits. This immigration-driven growth could more than double the country’s population over the next 50 years. Statistics Canada estimates the population will reach 62.8 million by 2074, up from 40.1 million in 2023.

Housing crisis fuels discontent

The growing public discontent toward immigration largely stems from Canada’s housing crisis. The OECD reported in 2022 that Canada had the most expensive housing market among G7 nations. Housing prices soared 90% between 2010 and 2022, making it one of the least affordable markets in the world.

Many Canadians tend to scapegoat immigrants despite the crisis being driven by long-standing government policies. Jack Jedwab, president of the Association for Canadian Studies, emphasized that the housing crisis and economic concerns are fueling a shift in attitudes toward immigration.

Even the Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) acknowledged that public servants warned two years ago that housing construction was not keeping up with population growth. The government knew the increasing number of immigrants would strain the healthcare system and make housing less affordable.

As a result, the rental housing crisis has become a major political issue. Under pressure from opposition parties, the government has taken drastic measures to limit the number of international students and temporary immigrants.

Immigration is no longer seen as the solution to economic growth

Immigration Minister Mark Miller announced that the federal government would reduce the number of temporary residents in Canada. While immigration has boosted population growth in recent years, it has also contributed to housing shortages, rising rents, strain on healthcare and stagnating economy. These issues have forced the Trudeau government to cut the share of temporary residents from 6.2% in 2023 to 5% by 2027, a reduction of nearly 20%. Canada will also reduce the number of student visas by 35% in 2024, disappointing international applicants.

Adjusting immigration levels to suit current economic conditions is a legitimate move for the Trudeau government, given how crucial immigrants are to Canada’s prosperity. However, some politicians and public figures hesitate to discuss immigration restrictions due to concerns about appearing xenophobic.

Canada has a history of controversial immigration policies. In 1885, the government introduced the infamous Chinese Head Tax, which initially charged Chinese immigrants $50 to enter Canada. This fee later increased to $500. The Chinese Immigration Act of 1923, also known as the Chinese Exclusion Act, nearly barred Chinese immigrants from entering Canada until it was repealed in May 1947. This law, the first to exclude people based on ethnicity, remained in place until 1947. The federal government did not officially apologize for the Chinese Exclusion Act until 2006.

Today, many Canadians are concerned about Quebec’s controversial Law 21, passed in 2019. The law forbids public employees in positions of authority from wearing religious symbols. In 2021, an elementary school teacher in Chelsea, Quebec, was fired for refusing to remove her traditional Muslim headscarf. The case sparked public outrage, but the Superior Court of Quebec upheld the law despite acknowledging that it violates religious minorities’ freedom of expression and religion.

Potential impact of a second Trump Presidency on Canada’s immigration system

If former US President Donald Trump wins a second term, Canada may face an immigration surge. During his 2016 campaign, Trump promised to deport illegal immigrants from the US. Although legal and bureaucratic obstacles prevented him from fulfilling this plan, many believe he would pursue it more aggressively in a second term, potentially deporting up to 11 million people. Former US Ambassador to Canada Bruce Heyman said these individuals would likely flee north to Canada.

Trump’s immigration plans remain popular among Americans. A recent CBS poll showed that 62% of voters support a national program to deport all illegal immigrants. Even if legal hurdles prevent mass deportations, fear and uncertainty among immigrants could drive many to seek refuge in Canada.

In 2022 alone, more than 39,000 illegal migrants entered Canada from the US via Roxham Road, the longest undefended land border in the world. In 2023, Canada reached a long-discussed agreement with the US to regulate this influx by applying changes to the Safe Third Country Agreement across the entire Canada–US border. These changes allow both countries to turn away asylum seekers at unofficial border crossings.

The number of asylum seekers has continued to rise. If Trump is re-elected, Roxham Road could become a political flashpoint for Canada. However, considering it took 20 years to amend the Safe Third Country Agreement, a solution may be far off.

[Liam Roman edited this piece]

The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect Fair Observer’s editorial policy.

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Rishi Sunak, Conservative leader, has used a farewell address to party members to warn that the Tories will be consigned to the margins of politics for good unless they end their internecine feuding.

“When we turn in on ourselves, we lose,” Sunak told activists in a low-key address on the first day of the party’s annual conference in Birmingham. “We must end the division and the backbiting and squabbling,” he added.

Sunak left the conference on Sunday to clear the stage for the four contenders who hope to succeed him as Tory leader, pleading with members: “Whoever wins the contest, give them your backing.”

His farewell speech was an informal affair, held in a nightclub-style environment with blue lighting and neon-lit blue Conservative “tree” logos, but carried a serious message to his often-divided party.

“We must always remember what unites us, rather than obsessing about where we might differ,” he said. Robert Jenrick, Kemi Badenoch, Tom Tugendhat and James Cleverly are vying to succeed him.

Sunak’s valedictory address came as it emerged that his former deputy prime minister Oliver Dowden had been interviewed to assist police as part of the Gambling Commission probe into bets on the date of the election.

The first day of the Conservative conference saw the party assemble for its first annual gathering since its crushing defeat in the general election, which left the Conservatives with only 121 MPs.

The Financial Times counted fewer than 20 business people in attendance at an “SME Day” (for small and medium sized enterprises) event attended by former ministers.

However, the mood among many Tory members was far less subdued than might have been expected, given the party’s implosion on July 4.

Some Tory members appeared more upbeat than their counterparts at last week’s Labour conference in Liverpool, where activists were concerned about prime minister Sir Keir Starmer’s first few months in office.

Sunak attacked Starmer’s “cruel” decision to withdraw winter fuel payments from most pensioners and lampooned the prime minister’s acceptance of free clothes and glasses from the Labour peer Lord Alli.

The Tory leader said: “Socialists always run out of other people’s money, something Lord Alli is finding out the hard way,” he said. Sunak added: “You don’t need designer glasses to see the shine is coming off Keir Starmer already.”

Tory activists cheered Sunak off the stage and claimed the former premier had been vindicated in warning before the election that Starmer would hike taxes and borrowing.

In a reminder of one of the worst scandal’s that beset the final weeks of Sunak’s premiership, Sky News reported on Sunday that his key lieutenant Oliver Dowden, former deputy prime minister, has been interviewed in the official investigation into betting on the date of the general election.

An investigation was launched in June when Craig Williams, Sunak’s closest parliamentary aide, and another Tory candidate were placed under investigation for allegedly placing bets on the date of the election, prompting the Conservative party to eventually withdrew support from them just days before the poll.

A Labour candidate was also suspended over placing bets on whether he would lose his seat.

Dowden spoke to police officers involved in the Gambling Commission probe earlier this summer to help their inquiries as part of their investigation into other figures, it was reported.

An ally of Dowden said he was never and is not under any sort of investigation by the Gambling Commission. 

THORPE Park has been named the country’s best theme park by the Great British public.

The UK Theme Park Awards took place last night, with the Surrey-based park bagging the top spot.

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The awards were organised by ThemeParks-UK.com who publish independent consumer guides.

More than 360,000 votes were cast by the public and combined with scores from expert judges to rank the country’s best theme parks.

Awards were spread across 22 categories, including the Best New Attraction, the Best Theme Park for Families, the Best Seaside Park and the New Park of the Year.

Thorpe Park beat the likes of Alton Towers and Drayton Manor to be named the best in the country for 2024.

The Surrey-based theme park, which first opened to the public in 1979, also took first place for the best new attraction, Hyperia.

Hyperia opened to the public earlier this year, becoming the country’s tallest and fastest rollercoaster.

Standing at a whopping 236ft tall, the hypercoaster claims to be the UK’s highest, swiping the crown from Blackpool Pleasure Beach’s The Big One by just a few inches.

It also smashes coaster speed records, reaching break-neck speeds of 81mph.

Hyperia wasn’t the only new addition this year, with American-themed Big Easy Boulevard also opening this year.

The new area replaced the park’s Angry Birds land, which had been in place for ten years.

Big Easy Boulevard is based on New Orleans and has several rides, as well as a 4D cinema.

Detonator, a drop tower ride that sends people plummeting 100ft, remains in the area from the Angry Birds land – although it has been rebranded to fit in with its new surroundings.

Other rides at the theme park include Stealth, the UK’s fastest launch coaster, and Vortex, a giant pendulum that swings riders through the air.

Drayton Manor’s Gold Rush took second place as the best new attraction at a UK theme park, with Legoland’s Minifigure Speedway coming in at third.

OTHER AWARD WINNERS

Nemesis Reborn

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Other winners of the night included Nemesis Reborn at Alton Towers, which was named the Best Reimagined Attraction.

Nemesis was first unleashed to the public in March 1994 and has become a favourite among thrill-seekers ever since.

However, it closed in November 2022 for retracking and for other changes to be made to the rollercoaster.

After undergoing the biggest overhaul in its 30-year history, the ride was renamed Nemesis Reborn.

You can read our world-first review of Nemesis Reborn here.

Paultons Park

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Paultons Park bagged the top spot for the Best Theme Park for Families and Toddlers.

Paultons Park features more than 70 rides, including roller coasters, family rides, and attractions.

It is also known for being the home of Peppa Pig World, voted the No.1 theme park on TripAdvisor.

Guests will find Grampy Rabbit’s Sailing Club, The Queen’s Flying Coach, Grandpa Pig’s Little Train, and Peppa’s Big Balloon in the Peppa Pig World.

Kids can also enjoy play areas, as well as meet and greets with Peppa Pig and George Pig.

Peppa Pig World isn’t the only attraction at Paultons Park, as there’s also Tornado Spring, a world set in a midwest desert resort town in the 1950s.

Other themed worlds include the Lost Kingdom, Critter Creek, and Little Africa.

Drayton Manor

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Drayton Manor topped the list as the UK’s Best Value Theme Park.

The park is already considered to be among the more affordable resorts in the UK, with UK Family Break previously describing it as “the ideal place for an unforgettable cheap family day out”.

Drayton Manor is home to more than 50 attractions, including Stormforce 10 River Rapids, Thor, Accelorator, Thomas and Percy’s Submarine Splash and The Bounty Pirate Ship.

Meanwhile, this new theme park with 25 attractions has opened in Europe – and flights are only £15.

And here are five European theme parks that are alternatives to Disneyland.

The Sun’s review of Hyperia at Thorpe Park

The Sun’s Lee Bell visited Thorpe Park to try the new ride out. Here’s what he thought…

“I was able to ride the steel monster three times, experiencing its exhilarating speeds in the middle of the train, at the front and then, for my last (and best) ride, right at the back.

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“First impressions: it’s unlike any other rollercoaster in the UK right now.”Not only for the obvious reason that it’s over double the height, but its focus on flinging riders out of their seats and experiencing ‘weightlessness’.

“It’s no surprise that the first drop is what really steals the show on this rollercoaster.

“While it’s the tallest in the country, it’s unique in that it twists riders 180 degrees while they plummet down a huge vertical drop right before reaching the ground at top speeds of over 80mph.

“The back row is easily the best place to experience this, since you’re catapulted over the crest of the drop at speed, and right into the drop with a free-fall-like feeling.

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“It’s an incredible ride that will make you want to ride it again and again.”It’s certainly a coaster that can compete with some of the best in Europe and is easily, in my experience, the best the UK has to offer.”

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As the border continues to play an important policy role in the upcoming 2024 presidential election, former President and current Republican nominee Donald Trump criticized the government’s immigration process during a campaign speech on Saturday, Sept. 28, in Wisconsin.

He once again called out the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) app—a mobile application that hosts a single portal to multiple CBP services, including a space for immigrants to schedule appointments to present themselves at a port of entry and for carriers to request cargo inspections. 

“They have a phone app so that people can come into our country… these are smart immigrants, I guess, because most people don’t have any idea what the hell a phone app is,” Trump said at the Prairie Du Chien Area Arts Center in Prairie Du Chien, a city of about 5,500 people along the Mississippi River.

The campaign for Vice President and Democratic nominee for President Kamala Harris posted a video of the moment on X (formerly Twitter), with a caption reciting Trump’s comments.

Many users on X have reacted to Trump’s comment, showing surprise that Trump believes many don’t know what apps are.

“I feel like most people know what a phone app is,” former tennis star Andy Roddick wrote on X. “It’s not 2004 any more. It’s 2024,” another person wrote, pointing out that Trump owns his own social media platform, Truth Social, which has an app component. Meanwhile, one commenter claimed: “How out of touch with reality do you have to be to believe most people don’t know what a phone app is?”

The post from Kamala HQ mirrors the campaign’s recent strategy of simply posting clips from Trump’s speeches, and letting the Internet’s virality culture do the work. The campaign’s X account posted other clips from Trump’s speech in Wisconsin, including comments Trump made about a fly on stage.

“Oh, there’s a fly. Oh, I wonder where the fly came from,” Trump said. “See, two years ago, I wouldn’t have had a fly up here. But they’re changing rapidly. We can’t take it any longer.”

Trump didn’t elaborate on his comments regarding the insect, which were made during a section of his speech whereby he discussed immigration. Responding to the moment, some social media users called back to the viral instance in 2020 when a fly landed on Mike Pence’s head during the vice-presidential debate against Kamala Harris.

This is not the first time Trump has targeted the CBP One App. Earlier this month, Trump posted about it on his Truth Social account, calling the service the “Kamala phone app for smuggling illegals” and vowing to close it.

According to the CBP website, the CBP One App was launched on Oct. 28, 2020—when Trump was still President. In January 2023, the Biden Administration announced that it would expand use of the app, at which point migrants began requesting appointments using CBP One. The app became particularly prominent once the Biden Administration put in place new asylum rules after the expiration of Title 42.

If a person does not seek asylum in the country they moved through to get to the U.S. or didn’t use the CBP One app, any asylum claim they make in the U.S. will likely be rejected. Yet, there is much criticism from immigration rights advocates that the CBP One App has been unable to keep up with the demand from migrants.

Read More: Migrants Struggle to Make Asylum Claims Through CBP App

Trump’s Wisconsin speech, and its focus on immigration, follows Harris’ visit to  the U.S.-Mexico border. It was Harris’ first appearance there since becoming the Democratic presidential nominee. After visiting the border on Friday, she made remarks in Arizona, putting forth a more visible “tough on immigration” image.

“I reject the false choice that suggests we must choose either between securing our border and creating a system that is orderly, safe, and humane,” Harris said. “We can and we must do both.”

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Benjamin Netanyahu has struck a deal with opposition politician Gideon Sa’ar to bring his right-wing New Hope party into government, in a move that will bolster the Israeli prime minister’s ruling majority.

The agreement comes as polls suggest that support for Netanyahu’s Likud party is recovering from the depths it plumbed after Hamas’s October 7 attack, as Israel has launched aggressive operations in both Lebanon, where it has delivered a series of devastating blows to Hizbollah, and Iran.

Sa’ar, a hawkish lawyer who began his career in Likud before falling out with Netanyahu and becoming one of the prime minister’s most vocal critics, will enter the cabinet as a minister without portfolio.

In a joint press conference on Sunday night, Netanyahu acknowledged the pair’s fractious history — which also included Sa’ar joining and then leaving the emergency government set up after October 7 — but said that the two men had decided to put those differences behind them.

“It’s not a secret that we have had disagreements in the past,” he said. “But since October 7, we have both put all the grudges of the past behind us.”

Sa’ar, who has staked out hawkish positions on the war, including urging a more aggressive approach both against Hizbollah and in Gaza, said he had decided to rejoin the government because he had concluded that “the majority of [the opposition’s] members hold views on the war that are different from mine”.

“This is a time when my duty is to contribute to decision-making,” he said.

The addition of New Hope’s four seats means that Netanyahu’s now six-party coalition with an assortment of rightwing, far-right and ultrareligious parties will control 68 seats in Israel’s 120-seat parliament, weakening the ability of smaller partners to extract concessions.

Since the coalition came to power in 2022, both ultranationalist finance minister Bezalel Smotrich and far-right national security minister Itamar Ben-Gvir have threatened to pull their parties out of government owing to disagreements with Netanyahu. But now neither would on their own be able to topple the government by doing so.

The arrival of Sa’ar could ultimately also pave the way for Netanyahu to replace his defence minister Yoav Gallant, who has been increasingly critical of Netanyahu’s leadership, including over his failure to reach a deal with Hamas to free the Israeli hostages still held by the militant group in Gaza.

Sa’ar announced last weekend that Netanyahu had offered him the position of defence minister, but said he had decided not take up the role at that time, as a change of minister in the middle of an escalation with Hizbollah would be an unnecessary distraction.

Netanyahu previously attempted to fire Gallant in March 2023 after Gallant warned that the polarisation sparked by a controversial judicial overhaul being pushed by Netanyahu’s coalition was undermining Israeli security, only to back down in the face of mass protests.