Policy making is a complex issue, not simplistically black and white. Take immigration:
How do we balance the clear benefits of immigration against the negative impacts?
Immigration is a major benefit to the labour market. In 2003, Stats Can predicted that by 2011 Canada’s labour force would have to depend on immigrants because our birth rate had fallen. This was true for most industrialised nations.
An adequate labour force is integral to productivity, to the expansion of businesses and industries and to our nation’s competitiveness, globally.
There are many jobs which are not filled because Canadians do not wish to do, nor have the specific skills to perform. Sectors like nursing and medicine come to mind, but also skilled crafts persons in construction, such as plumbers and tile layers. We see how a lack of workers with these skills have impacted health care delivery and housing builds.
Immigration allows Canada to reap the skills of immigrants who trained in another country.
So how do we find the right balance to grow our economy? The workforce that can feed it, also requires housing and health care. If we don’t measure the benefits against the costs, we will always make simplistic, politically motivated decisions.
We cannot have ideologically based or jingoistic solutions to complex problems. Slogans prey on the vulnerability of Canadians, feeding disinformation and exploiting emotions.
Canadians are very able to make good decisions if given the facts. In a democracy, a free and responsible press has the power to do just that.
