Canada has welcomed about 250,000 permanent immigrants each year for the last two decades. That's almost 700 people a day – enough to populate a small town.

And the majority of Canadians like it that way.

A study published by the Montreal-based Institute for Research on Public Policy found the majority of Canadians – in every region across the country – support the current level of immigration. The study, entitled Pro-immigration Canada: Social and Economic Roots of Popular Views, showed the Prairies, Quebec and Atlantic Canada are most supportive, with over 62 per cent of those surveyed last November in favour of continuing with the existing immigration rate.

Last year saw 280,000 permanent immigrants join us in the Great White North; the greatest number in 50 years.

Both parties win when Canada attracts a new arrival. It feels good to do something good for a stranger, whether it's just pausing to hold open a door for someone at the mall, or opening the door for someone to begin life as a Canadian.

It's a cliché to say Canada was built on immigration, but it's also the truth. Wave after wave of newcomers have shaped the country.

Our differences – from Nova Scotia to B.C., or from Quebec to Saskatchewan – make this country an interesting place to live. Imagine how different life would be here today if we were all of the same homogenous background; 30 million people who know only one way to live.

Instead we have multiculturalism, and we all benefit. We can pick and choose which bits of which cultures we want to adopt or adapt.

We go one better than simply accepting immigration, and we actually embrace it. We see an economic benefit to immigration at the same time we consider it a matter of national pride. And we should be proud that we can bring together people from all over the world in one place and make our country work.

That's a far cry from how immigration is seen in some other Western countries. It's nice to know that Canadians' satisfaction in welcoming others is so entrenched that anti-immigration sentiments can't get traction here.

Unlike the U.K. or France, we have no political party in favour of shutting the door on newcomers. Complaining about immigrants would sound like – ahem – a foreign concept to most Canadians, and trying to form a National Front in Canada would be a lonely exercise indeed.

That said, the study did find that people who live in communities that have experienced the greatest influx of new Canadians are less likely to support a further increase in the rate of immigration. That's not surprising; if your neighbourhood or city is changing it can take some time to discover that the change isn't a threat.

But even if some of us may not support a jump in the current immigration rate, it's worth considering. If we have the resources and we can continue to offer opportunity, and if it doesn't negatively impact Canadians' attitudes to newcomers, why not open the door a little wider?

There may be a tipping point – a rate of immigration that feels overwhelming – but we're not there yet. The study says we're not even close.

If we can do more, we should.

Would you support an increase in the number of permanent immigrants to Canada each year? Or does an increase risk a backlash?