By David Baxter

The Canadian Press

Posted September 8, 2025 3:06 pm

Updated September 8, 2025 3:23 pm

1 min read

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A new poll suggests 44 per cent of Canadians want to see the temporary foreign worker program scrapped as the country grapples with high unemployment, especially among young people.

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre recently proposed eliminating the program in response to high youth unemployment.

The new Abacus Data poll, which was conducted online and can’t be assigned a margin of error, suggests that support for eliminating the program is higher among younger age cohorts, topping 50 per cent of 30- to 44-year-old respondents and hitting 48 per cent of those 18 to 29.

Click to play video: 'Poilievre calls on Carney to scrap Canada’s temporary foreign worker program'

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Poilievre calls on Carney to scrap Canada’s temporary foreign worker program

Support for ending the program is highest in the Prairie provinces and lowest in Québec and Atlantic Canada.

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Prime Minister Mark Carney last week ruled out scrapping the program, adding that it’s part of a broader immigration policy review.

The polling industry’s professional body, the Canadian Research Insights Council, says online surveys cannot be assigned a margin of error because they do not randomly sample the population.

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