Population growth in Canada slowed slightly in the last quarter of the year as the government made efforts to reduce temporary migration into the country, Statistics Canada revealed Wednesday.
It’s the first time quarterly growth has slowed since the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, when the number of people coming into the country ground almost to a halt as the government closed Canada’s borders.
International migration almost entirely accounts for the increase to Canada’s population.
In January, Immigration Minister Marc Miller announced plans to impose a soft cap on the number of temporary residents in Canada, which has rapidly increased since the pandemic and has put pressure on the country’s housing stock.
The specific limits will be announced this fall, but in the meantime the government has taken several steps to scale back the number of temporary workers and international students in Canada.
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Statistics Canada said the number of non-permanent residents continues to grow, but …