People are leaving Ontario for this province in Canada

Ontario residents continue to flee the province, according to the latest numbers from Statistics Canada.

Canada’s population continues to grow, reaching an estimated 40,528,396 in October — that’s an increase of 430,635 people (1.1 per cent) from July 1, according to the Statistics Canada population estimates report for the third quarter of the year, released this week.

This was the highest population growth rate in any quarter since the second quarter of 1957 (1.2 per cent), when Canada’s population grew by 198,000 people to 16.7 million people, Statistics Canada noted.

The 1957 rapid population growth was attributed to the “baby boom” — a high number of births during the post-war period.

This latest population growth was due to international migration. Canada welcomed 107,972 immigrants in the third quarter. From January to September 2023, immigration reached 79.8 per cent (371,299) of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada’s target of 465,000 immigrants for the year.

And in 2023 Canada’s total population growth for the first nine months of 2023 had already exceeded the total growth for any other full-year period since Confederation in 1867, including 2022, when there was a record growth.

But while Ontario also saw a 1.2 per cent overall population growth in the third quarter — it also continues to see people leave the province.

Alberta continues to be the province of choice for people to move to. The province has registered interprovincial migration gains of 10,000 or more for five consecutive quarters for the first time since comparable data were made available (1971), the Statistics Canada report stated.

“Most of Alberta’s population gains through interprovincial migration were due to its exchanges with Ontario and British Columbia,” Statistics Canada noted.

Alberta is known for its well-paying jobs and less expensive housing but it has also launched a campaign to lure residents from Ontario and other provinces recently.

Ontario saw 5,952 people leave for other provinces during the third quarter of the year but immigration and births still resulted in the overall 1.2 per cent population increase.

While there are many people immigrating to Canada, there are also Canadians leaving to live in other countries.

About 32,026 people emigrated, a three per cent increase compared to the third quarter of 2022 but this is not unexpected or higher than normal, due to the methodology used for the estimates of the emigration, a Statistics Canada spokesperson tells insauga.com.

“There is typically a higher number of emigrants during the months of July to September,” the spokesperson said. “This seasonal trend is consistent with previous years.”

Also, it is important to acknowledge that these estimates are preliminary and subject to change, the spokesperson added.

See the Statistics Canada third quarter population estimates report here for more information.