There was a time when I thought Canada’s immigration policies were superior to the United States’.
For decades, we have placed far too much weight on things like family reunification, and far too little on recruiting talent. For decades, Canada had more selective policies, and it benefited greatly.
Canada added migrants equal to 16.9% of its 2015 population from Jan. 2015 to mid-2026. The USA added 4.9%.
And real GDP per capita rose 22.7% in the USA & 4.0% in Canada.Canada took in 3.5x the migrants per capita and had 1/5th of the economic growth. https://t.co/qrqW9t9QHT pic.twitter.com/t70C5hFsjW
— Smirkley (@Smirkley) September 26, 2026
In fact, I was only vaguely aware of the fact that our neighbor to the North, our brother from another mother (with whom we are having a family spat), had significantly changed its policies, but it turns out that the country threw out every advantage it had and opted for essentially open borders, and it shows.
Canadian Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne made the old pitch about Canada’s policy of recruiting the best and the brightest, and the appeal to people like me is genuine. Who wouldn’t want to skim the cream off the top, no matter where the people were born? Would you reject Einstein? Or Elon Musk? Rather than focusing on the accident of birth, bet on who you think is most likely to add real value to society.
The thing is, that pitch is outdated, and all the data shows it. If Canada really were recruiting the best talent in the world and being selective in who they choose to bring in, the data would show it in many ways, not the least of which is the fact that adding 17 percent to your population in a decade is obviously not done while being highly selective. The Globe and Mail looked at the US and Canada’s immigration policies, and the news was startling. As dramatic as you thought the Biden surge was, it was nothing compared to Canada. For years, that immigration was targeted; recently, the opposite has been true.
And that vast expansion has not led to prosperity. It has accompanied a serious slowdown in the economy — and has made living standards noticeably worse for ordinary Canadians, who are seeing prices for things like housing skyrocket.
And then there is the economic data. Canada was, for years running, neck and neck with the US in terms of economic performance, but no longer. In productivity growth, for instance, Canada is right at the bottom of the G7, and its GDP per capita is dreadful compared to its competitors.
The OECD ranks Canada last in projected GDP per capita, which is truly terrifying. A country that was once neck and neck with the United States is now a laggard behind countries we tend to think of as dysfunctional.
The “talent” immigration pitch was compelling at one time. Canada welcomed Hong Kong’s exodus before the Chinese took over governing the city, and I wish we had done the same. Who wouldn’t want that many ambitious, industrious people entering your country? Highly educated, great work ethic, proven results.
That was the old Canada. We now see Fidel Trudeau’s Canada, and the results are dismal.
It’s no secret that the European Union has been crippling itself with a combination of horrific economic, energy, and immigration policies, and it’s appropriate that Canada wants to build closer ties to a political unit that shares its suicidal policies.
But even among EU countries, it will enter as the sick man of Europe, to borrow a phrase. An Associate sick man, at that, which makes it a bratty little brother you want little to do with.
It’s sad. I love the idea of Canada. Our polite little brother whom we tease, but would fiercely protect from others. That is, for now, gone as a possibility.
That Canada is no more. Frankly, I wouldn’t want it as a 51st state, with its sclerotic economy, its love of bureaucracy and central planning, and its inflated self-esteem married to mediocrity.
Sure, there are places and people in Canada I would welcome (Alberta, for instance). Vote for independence and give us a call late this month.
But Ontario or Quebec? No, thank you.
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