The study suggests that immigration levels should be raised by six percent a year until the year 2012. If followed, this would result in approximately 337,000 new permanent residents in 2018.

The study argues that an immediate short-term influx of new immigrants is needed to help stabilize Canada’s labour market, which is in need of workers. Annual immigrant intake, which has been frozen at around 250,000 per year for the last seven years, is not currently enough to address labour market concerns.

“A guiding principle should be that immigration is essentially a means for addressing long-term human resources needs rather than short or medium-term needs,” says the report. It also recommends that ‘no further reductions’ are made to the popular Federal Skilled Worker program.

Recommendations were also made to maintain the current mix of new immigrants, of which 63 percent arrive in Canada through economic categories.