It is interesting that the study below does not separate "immigrants" who are generally economic migrants by choice and contribute skis or capital to the economy and add to the labour force, and "refugees' who are generally poor and require significant taxpayer support and public expense. If that question would have been asked, would the results have been different?
Canadians view immigration more positively than Europe, U.S.: Poll
Canadians view immigration more positively than Europe, U.S.: Poll
By Peter O'Neil, Postmedia NewsFebruary 3, 2011
PARIS — Canadian attitudes toward immigration are hardening but Canada remains a relative island of tranquillity compared to other increasingly anti-immigrant Western developed countries, according to a poll released Thursday.
The annual survey, done by a Washington-based think-tank, looked at public perception of a wide variety of immigration issues in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and Spain.
The study found a near-consensus that the public is frustrated by their governments' handling of immigration policy, and showed that those who are struggling financially are particularly hostile.
Canada, according to the German Marshall Fund of the United States, sharply diverged from the other seven countries on questions ranging from government performance to the impact of immigrants on society and the economy.
"Canadian attitudes are by far the most positive among all countries surveyed," think-tank analyst Delancey Gustin told Postmedia News.
"Canadians really are outliers on pretty much every measure, which is pretty shocking . . . considering that one in five people in Canada was born abroad."
Gustin said the modest hardening of attitudes in Canada was likely linked to the controversy over the landing of a boatload of Tamil migrants in British Columbia last summer.
She pointed out that 67 per cent of respondents felt in 2010 that immigrants helped create jobs by establishing new businesses, down from 75 per cent in 2009.
And the proportion of Canadians who thought immigration "enriches" culture by bringing in new customs and ideas slipped from 65 per cent to 60 per cent.
But in both cases the numbers were significantly higher than those from the U.S. and Europe.
She said Canadian government policy, and more importantly Canadian geography, drive public attitudes.
Canada, protected on all sides by the Arctic, two oceans and the huge U.S. buffer standing in the way of Latin America migrants, can be more selective because it doesn't face the undocumented cross-border inflows confronting U.S. and European governments.
"Geography is a huge factor," she said.
"Research shows when immigrants come from far away more they're more likely to succeed, because it costs a lot of money and requires connections.
"These people are typically more educated and tend to be the elite of their own country. So you guys have (the) luxury of kind of skimming right off the top and bringing in the best and brightest."
The sense that the government has control over the flow of migrants is reflected in attitude toward government policy.
Slightly fewer than half the Canadians surveyed, or 48 per cent, said the government was doing a good job, while 43 per cent said it was doing a poor job. The rest either refused to say or didn't know.
In the U.S., 73 per cent said the government was doing a poor job, while 62 per cent of Europeans felt that way.
In Canada 13 per cent said the number of newcomers arriving is "too much," compared to 23 per cent of Americans and 29 per cent of Europeans. Almost half of British respondents (46 per cent), hit with a wave of so-called "Polish plumbers" taking advantage of European Union mobility rules, said the numbers were excessive.
"The perception that things are under control is an important one, because British respondents feel that immigrants have overrun their country. There is a similar feeling here in the United States, that the government doesn't have control over the issue."
Respondents who have suffered during the recession were more likely to have negative views in all countries. Of the Canadians in 2010 who felt their personal economic situation has declined, 33 per cent believed immigrants dragged down wages. Among those whose situations improved or stayed the same, 29 per cent said newcomers depress income levels for everyone.
In Europe, 36 per cent of those whose status stayed the same or got better blamed immigrants for dragging down wages, while 49 per cent of those whose situation declined felt that way.
Roughly 1,000 people were interviewed in each country, with the European polling done between Aug. 27 and Sept. 13, 2010, while the Canadian and U.S. respondents were interviewed in mid-November of last year.
The results are considered accurate to within three percentage points, 19 times out of 20, according to the German Marshall Fund of the United States.
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