Business leaders in B.C.91裸聊视频檚 capital city say the new cap on international student visas requires a serious rethink.

The federal government91裸聊视频檚 recent decision to temporarily slash visas by more than one-third came amid concerns a stark rise in international student numbers is putting pressure on Canada91裸聊视频檚 housing system.

But Greater Victoria Chamber of Commerce CEO Bruce Williams argues there are other ways to deal with the housing crisis that don91裸聊视频檛 include a cap.

91裸聊视频淲e think that the better solution is to build more housing on campus,91裸聊视频� Williams said in an interview.

He pointed to Camosun College having no student housing while the University of Victoria has a multitude of residence options.

91裸聊视频淯niversities are allowed to carry debt and incur debt for things like housing, but community colleges are not,91裸聊视频� Williams said. 91裸聊视频淪o that needs to be examined.91裸聊视频�

The chamber said in January it was following up on concerns expressed by local post-secondary schools facing a serious and unanticipated financial burden from the international student program cap.

The University of Victoria is planning budget cuts for the 2024/2025 school year and it cited the decreasing international student enrolment as the primary cause. Four per cent of the university91裸聊视频檚 operating budget could be axed, which amounts to about $13 million.

Although the budget has been announced, UVic said 91裸聊视频渋t is too early91裸聊视频� to determine what areas will be impacted by the cuts.

Ultimately, Williams91裸聊视频� biggest concern is the long-term impact on Canada91裸聊视频檚 economy.

91裸聊视频淭he problem with this is that we need to create a workforce and post secondaries create the skills to create a workforce,91裸聊视频� he said. 91裸聊视频淲e have a huge demand for workers right now and immigrants, which includes international students, (the feds have) taken that all away.91裸聊视频�

The federal cap also aims to crack down on post-secondary intuitions that collect high fees from international students and offer a poor education in return. Those schools garnered harsh words from federal Immigration Minister Marc Miller during his January announcement.

91裸聊视频淚t is not the intention of this program to have sham commerce degrees or business degrees that are sitting on top of a massage parlour that someone doesn91裸聊视频檛 even go to and then they come into the province and drive an Uber,91裸聊视频� Miller said.

The cap is also being allocated based on each province91裸聊视频檚 population. That provision strives to make it so jurisdictions like B.C. and Ontario don91裸聊视频檛 get to accept more students than they can handle while smaller provinces end up with enrolment shortages.

Williams suggested that intuitions should be audited to keep them in check.

91裸聊视频淭here are colleges in Canada that have an inordinate number of international students, which is a major source of revenue for them, which also means that these visas are going to them and they91裸聊视频檙e now being evenly distributed across the country.91裸聊视频�

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