Citizenship and Immigration Committee on June 8th, 2026

[Peter Fragiskatos, Liberal, London Centre, ON]

Thank you very much. That's also a very important context.

I'd like to ask about a point about the temporary foreign worker program that came up.

Are you able to share with the committee the percentage of the overall workforce in Canada composed of temporary foreign workers?

[Alexis Graham]

I don't have that particular statistic on me, but I'll be very happy to table that with the committee.

[Peter Fragiskatos, Liberal, London Centre, ON]

Please do. I believe it's around 1%, but getting that update would be important.

Finally, in the 45 seconds I have left, what message do you want to leave the committee with today? What do you think is fundamental for us to understand about the work the department is doing?

[Alexis Graham]

The fundamental work right now is around facilitation, navigation and supporting those who have this talent and wish to come, in a way that's going to be as expeditious and as good a client experience as possible while making sure we are maintaining discipline within the overall immigration system.

[The Chair, Liberal, Julie Dzerowicz]

Thank you so much, Mr. Fragiskatos and Ms. Graham.

Mr. Deschênes, you have two and a half minutes.

[Alexis Deschênes, Bloc, Gaspésie—Les Îles-de-la-Madeleine—Listuguj, QC]

Thank you, Madam Chair.

Under the Canada-Quebec Accord, Quebec is responsible for all matters relating to the selection criteria for economic immigrants. Under the Constitution, Quebec is also responsible for managing education and prior learning assessments.

Does that complicate things for you?

[Alexis Graham]

That's an interesting question.

I'm going to answer in English so that I can express myself more clearly.

There are very clear roles and responsibilities based on the Canada-Quebec accord. I wouldn't necessarily characterize it as complicating things for us. It is just another set of rules we apply and another relationship that is very important in terms of engagement so that we have close collaboration with MIFI and others in Quebec, and so that we can be responsive to those needs and work within the avenues we have available to us.

[Alexis Deschênes, Bloc, Gaspésie—Les Îles-de-la-Madeleine—Listuguj, QC]

There is a still a need for coordination though.

Wouldn't it be easier to just repatriate all immigration powers to Quebec?

From what I understand, Quebec and Ottawa have to hold discussions, and things don't always go smoothly when it comes to coordination between the two.

[Alexis Graham]

Coordination is key, but this is not unique. It is something we need to do with all provinces and territories. While Quebec has a very specific selection authority and operates their program differently, there are provincial nominee programs and selection authorities that are similarly distinct from those of other provinces.

I think your point is about being very well coordinated and having close engagement to ensure that everybody is getting the outcomes intended with immigration. This is where we are always open to new ideas and to working with our colleagues in different ways in order to enhance that facilitation and get the labour market outcomes that are good for Quebec and good for Canada.

[The Chair, Liberal, Julie Dzerowicz]

Thank you, Ms. Graham.

Thank you, Mr. Deschênes.

We have five minutes for Mr. Menegakis, beginning right now.

[Costas Menegakis, Conservative, Aurora—Oak Ridges—Richmond Hill, ON]

Thank you, Madam Chair.

Thank you, officials, for appearing before us today.

Ms. Graham, you spoke about missing talent. You also mentioned launching an international advertising campaign to try to attract people.

How many young Canadians did you meet with before making a decision like that?

[Alexis Graham]

How many young Canadians have I personally met with?

[Costas Menegakis, Conservative, Aurora—Oak Ridges—Richmond Hill, ON]

Yes. Here's the situation: There are young Canadians in this country who are going to good universities, one of whom appeared before us in the last meeting we had. They've done everything right. They went to school. This particular gentleman went to an excellent university and graduated from a very competitive program. He's a very intelligent young man. He had to make 500 applications and ended up finding a job outside his field, barely making above minimum wage. You're launching an international campaign to draw more people into the country who are going to compete against our Canadian youth.

I'm wondering whether you have met with any Canadian youth. Have you heard their concerns?

[Alexis Graham]

I have not, personally, in my three months in this role, met with Canadian youth, but I very much understand your point and think it's a great idea. I would be very happy to put that on my list of things.

I will just say that the reality for these people is difficult. We're sympathetic. This is a very complex issue, but overall the numbers are going down.

[Costas Menegakis, Conservative, Aurora—Oak Ridges—Richmond Hill, ON]

I have limited time.

I know you want to say that the numbers are going down. Here's where they're not going down: The number of Canadian youth trying to find employment is not going down. Canadian youth unemployment is going up, largely due, in part, to the decisions your department has made under the auspices and guidance of the Liberal government that's in place.

I have another question for you.

We know youth unemployment is high. They're underemployed. Low-wage LMIA approvals went from 15,000 in 2020 to 50,000 in 2024. These are entry-level jobs. Recently, Tim Hortons, which is renowned for using IRCC as a human resources department, decided to hire 10,000 Canadians.

If a corporation can flip a switch and find Canadian workers, doesn't that show that the TFW program is less about labour shortages and more about the influence lobbyists have when they meet people from your department?

[Alexis Graham]

I just want to clarify that the temporary foreign worker program is actually run by ESDC. The design parameters of those labour market impact assessments and the tightening measures around who has access and which types of employers in which regions are all the responsibilities of that particular department.

[Costas Menegakis, Conservative, Aurora—Oak Ridges—Richmond Hill, ON]

Thank you for highlighting that.

You understand that lobbyists have money. They can lobby pretty hard because they're being paid to lobby the government. They have objectives that are not necessarily the same objectives we should have here in Parliament or that you should have in your department: bring in labour, lower costs and find cheaper labour. When we bring in these folks, they take jobs from Canadians. Canadian youth don't have that kind of money.

Do you think it's right for lobbyists to even speak with IRCC officials? I believe it's totally wrong.

If you really want to know what's happening on the ground, meet with Canadians or have a bipartisan meeting with all parliamentarians to be more informed about what we're hearing from Canadians in our offices every single day, including—I might add—over last weekend when I was back home. There's a lot of information that would be very useful for you. We're not paid by lobbyists or representing lobbyists. Lobbyists are representing people who want to reduce their costs.

[Alexis Graham]

There are many people we meet with at the officials level—ministers all across the system who—

[Costas Menegakis, Conservative, Aurora—Oak Ridges—Richmond Hill, ON]

I've been here for a year. Nobody has ever called me to say, “Mr. Menegakis, you're a member of Parliament. What are you hearing?” I would think this is something you should be doing.

Would you agree or disagree that you should converse with parliamentarians?

[Alexis Graham]

Of course. We always very much enjoy these committee experiences where we get to converse with you.

You're right. There are a lot of dimensions to these complex issues, and the more voices we can hear the more we're able to triangulate to solutions that are going to be beneficial.

[Costas Menegakis, Conservative, Aurora—Oak Ridges—Richmond Hill, ON]

What would you say to Canadian youth today who are struggling to work even in entry-level jobs? How about that young man—somebody who went to university, got their training and expects to have some kind of entry-level job in the field for which they studied?

What do you have to say to them when they know you are being lobbied heavily to bring in talent from outside the country while we have an abundance of Canadian talent right here that can fill those jobs?

[Alexis Graham]

I would start by saying that these issues are real and very complex. I would also say that immigration continues to have a role to play in this economy, in particular in building certain sectors. There are real labour market shortages that cannot be filled by Canadians.

[The Chair, Liberal, Julie Dzerowicz]

Thank you so much, Ms. Graham and Mr. Menegakis.

Next, we have five minutes for Mr. Zuberi.

[Costas Menegakis, Conservative, Aurora—Oak Ridges—Richmond Hill, ON]

Thank you.

[Sameer Zuberi, Liberal, Pierrefonds—Dollard, QC]

Thank you, Madam Chair.

Thank you to the witnesses for being here today.

I want to refocus what we're actually speaking about today. We had a motion that was adopted by this committee, and we're here to talk about the strategies to attract global talent in order to make our immigration policies help build the country and support the Canadian economy. I know you're getting a lot of questions that relate to ESDC, which are completely not in your purview. I thank you for entertaining those questions, although I'm sure they should be redirected to ESDC directly instead of to you.

To focus on some of what we've heard already, there have been some comments brought forth about lobbying as it relates to immigration policies, in particular to grad students and our policies regarding grad students. Could you flesh out a little bit how you actually make decisions when it comes to policies relating to grad students and immigration?

Is lobbying the only input that you're taking in, or are there other inputs when you create those policies?