Canada recorded the developed world’s fastest population growth last year, with the nation’s population growing by 1,272,000 people (3.2%) in 2023, driven by unprecedented net overseas migration of 1,241,000.
Based on official labour force data, Canada’s population growth has continued to break records in 2024, as illustrated in the following chart from the National Bank of Canada:
This extreme population growth has created the worst housing shortage on record, with population demand easily exceeding supply.
As a result, Canada’s rental vacancy rate has collapsed to a record low, while rental prices have skyrocketed:
The bigger concern relates to Canada’s economy.
Canada’s extreme immigration-driven population growth has kept the overall economy growing slowly:
However, per capita growth is falling fast, suggesting Canadian living standards are declining. In fact, Canada has recorded zero improvement in per capita GDP in around eight years:
Canada’s labour market is also deteriorating as record labour supply from net overseas migration swamps job creation across the economy:
This surge in labour supply amid tepid demand has lifted Canada’s official unemployment rate to 6.1%:
This rise in unemployment has been especially detrimental to new migrants and young Canadians seeking entry to the labour market:
Earlier this year, viral videos emerged of long queues of international students seeking entry-level jobs:
International students in Canada line up for entry level jobs.
This week, a Canadian colleague of a reader sent a video of a line-up for a security guard job in Toronto, which really hammers the point home:
Line up for jobs in Toronto
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While Australia is nowhere near as bad as Canada, there are similarities.
We, too, are running the largest immigration program in our history, are mired in a deep per capita recession, and are experiencing our worst rental crisis and housing shortage in living memory.
Australia’s labour market is also starting to crack amid the deluge of jobseekers (new migrants) competing for fewer available jobs:
Canada is living proof that Australia’s economic situation could deteriorate if the Australian government continues to pursue the same braindead mass migration policies as Canada.
