PM Trudeau announces massive cuts to Canada's immigration targets

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says the government is slashing immigration targets as he admits the government did not get the balance right following the COVID-19 pandemic.

The federal government is slashing immigration targets as Prime Minister Justin Trudeau admits the government did not get the balance right following the COVID-19 pandemic.

The government had targeted bringing in 500,000 new permanent residents in both 2025 and 2026.

Trudeau now says next year's target will be 395,000 new permanent residents, which will continue to fall to 380,000 in 2026 and 365,000 in 2027.

"In the tumultuous times as we emerged from the pandemic, between addressing labour needs and maintaining population growth, we didn't get the balance quite right," Trudeau said Thursday morning.

"With the plan we're announcing today, along with previously announced measures, we're making our immigration system work better."

The change comes after significant criticism of the Liberal government's increases to immigration and the impact of strong population growth on housing availability and affordability.

The government's goal is also to reduce the number of temporary residents to five per cent of the population over the next three years, down from 7.2 per cent in July.