This disagreement between Quebec and the federal government highlights a potential for conflict: education is within provincial jurisdiction and Quebec has the authority to decide its capacity for accommodating international students.
This disagreement between Quebec and the federal government highlights a potential for conflict: education is within provincial jurisdiction and Quebec has the authority to decide its capacity for accommodating international students.
Quebec is opposing the federal government’s proposal to set a cap on the number of international students it admits – rejecting a supposed solution to Canada’s housing crisis.
This disagreement between Quebec and the federal government highlights a potential for conflict: education is within provincial jurisdiction and Quebec has the authority to decide its capacity for accommodating international students.
This development follows a recent proposal by Canada’s Housing Minister, Sean Fraser, to consider imposing a cap on the issuance of study permits to alleviate the increasing pressure on housing.
Alexandre Lahaie, spokesperson for Quebec’s Immigration Minister Christine Fréchette, said decisions over the number of people Quebec can accommodate – including international students – falls within the purview of Quebec and its educational institutions.
The influx of over 100,000 foreign students in Canada in 2022 has allegedly exacerbated the country’s housing crisis and introduced a substantial pool of low-wage labor, effectively creating a new temporary foreign worker stream.
In the 2021-22 academic year, at least seven of Ontario’s 24 publicly funded colleges had more international students than domestic ones.
Lambton College in Sarnia had the highest proportion, with 92 percent of its students coming from international backgrounds.
Other colleges with significant international enrollment included Northern College in Timmins at around 90 percent; Canadore College in North Bay at 82 percent; and Sault College in Sault Ste. Marie at 60 percent.
Mike Moffatt, founding director of the PLACE Centre at the Smart Prosperity Institute, presented a new report on housing supply to the federal cabinet. In the report, he underlined the influence of the growing number of foreign students on the housing market, noting that it has transitioned from a rental crisis to a crisis affecting home ownership.
