Good and Lucky

Abstract

Abstract Canadian immigration policy is widely considered successful in terms of policy endurance, process, programs, and politics. Canada’s focus on the recruitment of economic immigrants has been successful in a programmatic sense, while also maintaining the support of key stakeholders, enabling process success, and addressing political debates, enhancing political success. Favouring resettlement over asylum in refugee policy has addressed concerns over the abuse of the immigration system, while maintaining the support of stakeholders that benefit from the policy’s innovative private sponsorship provisions. Effective policy design is, however, only part of the story. Three contingent factors also stand behind Canada’s successful immigration policy. First, Canada’s isolated geography limits flows of asylum seekers and other unwanted immigrants. Second, the substantial power vested in the federal executive branch has enabled Canadian governments to respond to flows of unwanted migrants quickly. Third, the unplanned interaction of immigration settlement patterns, citizenship policy, and Canada’s electoral system has helped sustain a pro-immigration consensus among Canada’s major political parties. The importance of contingent factors in the success of Canadian immigration policy limits its portability. Even where policy design can be imitated, Canada’s reliance on strong executive-led actions to limit unwanted migration raises normative concerns that problematize our understanding of success in immigration policy.