Today, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau met with the Premier of Quebec, François Legault.
The Prime Minister and the Premier discussed asylum seekers, temporary immigration, and the negotiation of bilateral agreements on shared priorities.
Prime Minister Trudeau confirmed that the Government of Canada will provide $750 million to the Government of Quebec for the provision of services to asylum seekers, including temporary housing.
As committed during their meeting on March 15, 2024, Prime Minister Trudeau also outlined a series of concrete measures that will be implemented by the Government of Canada to reduce the number of asylum seekers in Quebec in the short term. These measures include expediting the processing of claims by the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, working with other provinces to encourage asylum seekers to voluntarily relocate outside of Quebec, improving the integrity of Canada’s visa system, and continuing efforts to increase the removal of foreign nationals who are inadmissible to Quebec.
Prime Minister Trudeau asked Premier Legault for the Quebec government to share a reduction plan for immigration categories under its responsibility. These categories account for the majority of temporary immigration to Quebec.
Additionally, Prime Minister Trudeau committed to facilitating the integration of asylum seekers into the job market by speeding up the issuance of work permits, and by offering to work together to improve the integration of the federal Job Bank platform with the provincial Emploi Québec platform. This would help better promote the skills of asylum seekers, so they can more easily be matched with employers in Quebec and elsewhere in Canada.
The two leaders also agreed that their governments would continue working together to enhance French-language requirements for temporary immigrants. These measures will specifically target the International Mobility Program and the Temporary Foreign Worker Program.
The Prime Minister and the Premier agreed that responsible ministers within their respective governments would review progress on these commitments on a regular basis.
Finally, Prime Minister Trudeau and Premier Legault discussed the importance of working together to finalize several priority bilateral agreements for the benefit of Quebecers and Canadians, particularly in the areas of housing and infrastructure.