We Need More Nova Scotians

Nova Scotia’s population at the end of 2009 is the same as it was five years ago. Some might feel that a stable population is not a big worry but the total numbers conceal two big problems.

First, our population is getting older. Secondly, the population is increasingly urban. Neither of these trends is unique to Nova Scotia, or Canada. China’s rapid economic growth has been accompanied by vast migrations from the countryside to the cities. With few exceptions birth rates have been dropping all over the world.

An aging and declining population will be less and less able to support itself economically and socially. It is a most unattractive direction. There are only three ways it can be mitigated – higher birth rates, higher immigration, or lower emigration. A number of jurisdictions have invested heavily in promoting greater family size; none has achieved more than minor improvements. So this paper is about on attracting and retaining, where policy initiatives can make a dramatic difference.

Join the Conversation on…

I am convinced that this topic is of extraordinary importance but also that I may be missing some important aspects. Please contribute your thoughts:

  1. Do you agree that it is important to keep our province’s population stable or growing?
  2. Are there other good strategies to attract and retain Nova Scotians?
  3. A recent Statistics Canada release suggested that Atlantic Canada is much less diverse than the rest of the country. Would you welcome greater diversity in your community? Would others?
  4. Where does the leadership have to come from?
  5. Do you agree that a bigger Halifax is good for the rest of the province, and likewise that Halifax is better off if the rest of the province is growing rather than shrinking?
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Reference Material

Manitoba Immigration Site

Demographic tsunami will hit Atlantic Canada first

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Most Recent Comments

  • Dave thanks for this valuable contribution. We need to examine every possible way to grow numbers, especially in rural Nova Scotia.

    Bill

    Bill | December 12, 2011

  • Bill,

    I am a young Nova Scotian who has recently moved back from 6+ years in Alberta and am now living in a small rural town. I was born and raised in rural Nova Scotia and have pride in the area.
    I find your conversation about needing more Nova Scotian’s interesting because of my recent migration back to the province. In my younger years I remember a health community that had industry and viable economy. It was a place where people could start a family and settle down. The situation now is much different. Although it is still a great community, people are moving away and there isn’t a strong industry like in years past.
    As a young person moving back to Nova Scotia I have noticed some reasons why young people are leaving or not moving back. I’ll use my experience of moving to Alberta to compare.
    When moving out west there were tax incentives to help me get established. I had no money or goods but I had a generous income tax rebate for student loans and the provincial tax was only 5%. This means I could quickly get some money back to pay off my student loan and it was cheaper to buy things to get established.

    What are some solutions? The biggest incentive to get people to move back would be a job but secondly would be start up/moving costs. For example, why can’t the government allow a one year grace period for taxable income. I am going to get taxed on my high Alberta income for 2011, while getting a Nova Scotia salary. Is it possible to have a year grace period where I continue to pay tax at the rate I paid in Alberta? This way we have a smoother transition and we’re not penalized for moving.

    I’d be happy to discuss rural economic activity or nova scotia migration options at any time.

    Thanks!

    Dave | December 12, 2011

  • Hi Bill,

    I am speaking to you from the perspective of a 30 something mother of two and former Maritime Life employee… I am also born and raised in the Halifax area and if I have my choice will not live anywhere else in the world. My family, roots, and hopefully my future are here in this province and I enjoy the green space and hospitable people I encounter day to day.
    That being said, however, I’ve paid for education in both the Hospitality industry and the Information Technology field (the latter a $16000 I paid BECAUSE I wanted to work for a company with the reputation Maritime Life had in our community). Since the early part of this decade, I was laid off while pregnant with my first child, employed minimally in my chosen field of IT support between children, have a second son and cannot afford to return to full time work in Information Technology . How can this be? Well the last job I was at (2007) paid barely more than I made when starting my first professional job in 2001 and all my areas of expertise had been outsourced India and the Phillipenes.. so here I was, expected to perform as a ‘trained monkey’ on this side of the ocean, with no need to fund any training, and no raises or paid overtime (dont worry it was still expected given the critical role of an IT support person in keeping a call center running). At the end of it, after 3 years of no raises, constant increasing costs and family obligations, and now an outdated education which I cannot personally justify or afford to renew (with very little prospect for employment significantly better than I could attain otherwise ). I now work part time in the hospitality industry for minimum wage so that I may work when my husband is not working and thus reduce the amount of childcare needed while we white knuckle it through purchases like GROCERIES and our two aging cars which we need to go to work. My husband commutes to TRURO for a decent government job and we are virtually stuck in all other aspects of our life holding on and hoping things dont get worse. We want to have more children and are afraid to, we want to stay and work in this province but who knows how long this will work for us if things decline. I would like to go to school but Im terrified to spend any of our own precious resources to do what …; to be educated as what? and if I were to spend another 10k,20,40K+ for example if I wanted a university degree or career change what does that mean for my family…. I personally cannot take that risk…..

    I am a capable, talented , dedicated worker who would love nothing more than to be able to enjoy my young family without this constant fear…. and Im quite sure we are still firmly within the middle class …. im so sad for those with larger university debt and perhaps without benefit of one decent job in the family…. no wonder people leave and do not come back.. the hearts pine for their home but their wallets cannot bear the crunch..

    thanks for your views.. I enjoy the read and hope desperately for changes here before its too late…

    SHANNON | September 18, 2011

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