Prime Minister Mark Carney on Tuesday signalled he will take concerns over high levels of immigration into consideration, a day after over 75% of those who participated in the referendum in the western province of Alberta voted to remain part of Canada.
Five of the questions related to immigration, inserted by the provincial government, which had announced the referendum eight months earlier.
He said Albertans made a clear choice. “We are moving to a more sustainable pace of immigration. “They chose unity, to build together, and to take care of each other.
Where we go from here needs to be established in cooperation with the provinces, and that is very much the spirit of one of the questions in the referendum,” he said in Ottawa on Tuesday morning.
Immigration numbers, particularly for temporary residents including international students and workers, decreased due to public backlash over the surge in newcomers into the country. The results came as the Liberal Party government is looking at potentially increasing immigration levels as part of a plan to be announced next month.
“I am also convinced that the Federal Government is no longer targeting and trying to phase out and eliminate Alberta’s largest economic sectors as they attempted to do under the previous Prime Minister,” she said, referring to Carney’s predecessor Justin Trudeau, who had an antagonistic attitude towards its resource sector. Voters agreed that Alberta should take increased control over immigration to decrease it to more sustainable levels, prioritising economic migration and giving Albertans priority on new employment opportunities. A question related to supporting the provincial government introducing a law mandating that only Canadian citizens, permanent residents, and individuals with an Alberta-approved immigration status be eligible for provincially funded programmes, such as health care, education, and other social services.
“…for as long as I am premier, I will honour this mandate from Albertans and will not be holding another referendum on this issue,” she said, in a televised address on Tuesday evening. Smith welcomed the unity vote and indicated that Carney’s objective of working collegially with provinces had played a role in favour of the positive outcome. Carney spoke to Alberta Premier Danielle Smith on Tuesday, who vowed another such vote for separation will not be held as long as she remains its leader.
