(Halifax) Some provinces are sympathetic to Quebec’s request to take in more asylum seekers, but they already have their hands full.
That’s what Alberta Premier Danielle Smith suggested on Tuesday.
For several months, François Legault has been deploring the fact that Quebec welcomes almost half of the asylum seekers in Canada, while its demographic weight in the federation is 22%.
This would put unsustainable pressure on public services and housing and he is therefore calling on his counterparts to welcome more of this type of immigration.
At a press conference at the summer summit of the Federation Council, Mr.me Smith acknowledged that the problem is acute in Quebec.
She said she sympathized with Mr. Legault, but added that her province is already under similar pressure.
Alongside him, his colleague from British Columbia, David Eby, also argued that his province was doing more than its part in welcoming immigrants.
According to Mme Smith, the federal government must align the threshold of immigrants accepted with the capacity of the provinces to accommodate them, the housing to be built, the health and education services to be provided, etc.