With services stretched, P.E.I. government putting 'final touches' on new population strategy

P.E.I. is developing a new plan to manage population growth and the effects it has on health care and housing, says the minister of workforce, advance learning and population.

Jenn Redmond, the MLA for Mermaid-Stratford, made the announcement in the P.E.I. Legislature while responding to questions from Green Party Leader Peter Bevan-Baker.

Bevan-Baker said the province's current population growth plan is contributing to longer wait times at hospital emergency departments. He told a story of a man who showed symptoms of a stroke but could not be seen in a timely manner at the ER due to overcapacity.

"There are many factors that contribute to this dangerous situation but one underlying cause is a system that has not adapted to the rapidly growing population of our Island," Bevan-Baker said.

Redmond said the government "cares deeply" about the population growth on the Island and is putting the "final touches" on a population strategy. In an interview with CBC News, she said it doesn't necessarily mean a cap on population growth.

She said 93 per cent of immigrants are in the workforce, and more are needed to address an ongoing labour shortage.

"We know that we need houses built, we know that we need health-care workers, we know that we need educators, so we're going to continue to help move those folks that come here into those roles as they make a life here on P.E.I."

Redmond said the government is taking a collaborative approach across departments with the new strategy, and is talking to stakeholders such as the construction association and post-secondary institutions.

"It's not how fast we get it out, it's to ensure that it actually meets a whole government approach such as finding ways to ensure that we have enough supports in our health system, we have enough supports in our education, we have enough housing to support that."

The most recent population report from Statistics Canada shows P.E.I. is the fastest growing province in the country.

The province grew 4.3 per cent in 2022, adding more than 7,000 residents, bringing the total population to 173,954  as of Jan. 1, 2023.

The P.E.I. government is projecting a population of 200,000 in 2030, a milestone that would be four years ahead of what the province expected only a year ago.

Bevan-Baker said his data shows the province is falling well short of building the 2,000 new housing units a year needed to keep up with the projected population growth. He said the record population growth not only contributes to housing and health-care insecurity, but also the loss of farmland and inadequate child-care spaces.

"The situation is bad and is only going to get worse thanks to the same aggressive population strategy of this government," he said.

"And let me be clear. The problem here is not newcomers to the Island, in fact the newcomers are often the most impacted by these issues. The problem is an inept government that fails to plan properly and chases the economic growth that comes from bigger populations without investing on the infrastructure required to support it."

Redmond said the new strategy is expected this summer.