A relatively recent National Post article detailing how taxpayers have been forced to pay as much as $224/day for refugee claimants – many of whom are ineligible – partly characterizes the Liberal Party’s approach for future immigration. With Mark Carney elevating Mark Wiseman from the head of his campaign’s fundraising efforts to his board of advisors, Carney is signalling his support for Wiseman’s ‘Century Iniative’ – a lobby group that pushes the Liberals to increase Canada’s population to 100 million people. The two combined spells potential disaster for Canada, a country caught in the grips of a cost-of-living crisis, a housing crunch, and one whose healthcare system has been under enough pressure to rank it the second-worst in the developed world. Augment all of that with a trade war with its biggest trading partner – that Carney wishes to remove entirely – and a major storm is no longer just a possibility.
Carney’s immigration stance, while publicly framed as a temporary cap to return to “sustainable pre-pandemic trends,” belies a deeper alignment with Wiseman’s vision. The Century Initiative’s goal of adding 60 million people translates to roughly 800,000 new immigrants annually—a doubling of the 395,000 permanent residents targeted in Trudeau’s December 2024 Immigration Levels Plan1. This reckless ambition threatens to exacerbate existing strains on infrastructure and social services, already buckling under the weight of recent Liberal policies. Critics argue that the Trudeau-era immigration surge—over 4 million newcomers in recent years—has outpaced Canada’s capacity to house, employ, and care for them, a point Carney himself acknowledged in a November 2024 CBC interview when he admitted the country had “let down” immigrants by admitting more than it could absorb.
But the dangers extend beyond economics. The Liberal Party’s immigration policies have already sown seeds of social unrest, with unchecked inflows fueling hate-filled Islamic protests in Canadian streets. Toronto has seen weekly – and sometimes daily – displays of powers from the islamic community, which has included hate speech, intimidation, violence, the blocking of hospitals and ambulances, while Montreal sees similar “protests,” clashes with police, destruction of property, violence, hate speech, harassment, and intimidation as well. Increasing immigration to Century Initiative levels could turn this powder keg explosive, overwhelming law enforcement and deepening cultural divides. Carney’s refusal to explicitly disavow Wiseman’s 100-million target suggests a willingness to gamble with Canada’s stability for ideological gain.
The cost-of-living crisis, intensified by inflation and a housing shortage, would only worsen under such a plan. Canada’s housing deficit, estimated at 3.5 million units by 20302, cannot keep pace with current population growth, let alone a doubling of immigration. Meanwhile, the healthcare system—already plagued by wait times averaging 27.7 weeks for treatment, per the Fraser Institute3—faces collapse as demand surges. Taxpayers, already footing the bill for ineligible refugee claimants, would be squeezed further to subsidize this influx, with no clear plan from Carney to offset the fiscal burden.
Then there’s the trade war with the United States, ignited by Donald Trump’s 25% tariffs on Canadian goods. Carney’s strategy of dollar-for-dollar retaliation, as outlined in his March 9, 2025 victory speech, risks escalating tensions with a partner that accounts for 75% of Canada’s exports4. Rather than diversifying trade—a long-term goal he touts—Carney’s immediate focus on confrontation could tank the economy, leaving fewer resources to manage his immigration experiment. The combination of internal strain and external pressure paints a grim picture: a Canada stretched thin, socially fractured, and economically vulnerable.
Electing Carney and his Liberal Party is a roll of the dice with stakes too high to ignore. The Century Initiative’s 100-million dream, paired with the apparent Liberal policy of “party-first/Canada-last” threatens to flood Canada with taxpayer-funded migrants while igniting unrest and crippling essential services. Violent protests are just the beginning—without a drastic course correction, Carney’s leadership could usher in an era of chaos, not prosperity.
References
- Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada, Immigration Levels Plan announced in October 2024, adjusted in December 2024 to 395,000 permanent residents annually.
- Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation, 2023 estimate of a 3.5 million unit housing shortfall by 2030.
- Fraser Institute, “Comparing Performance of Universal Health Care Countries, 2023,” highlighting Canada’s poor healthcare ranking.
- Statistics Canada, 2024 data showing the U.S. accounts for approximately 75% of Canadian exports.
