Mike Moffatt

New visas for international students will be slashed by more than one-third this year as the federal government tries to slow a rapid increase in temporary residents that has put immense pressure on Canada's housing system.

Liberal cabinet ministers are suggesting the federal government is ready to tackle long-standing problems related to the international student program, including cases of fraud and exploitation by shady educational institutions.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is set to deliver a new mission for his cabinet at a three-day retreat in Charlottetown this week, in a bid to restore Canadians' sense of economic security and their confidence in his government.

High housing prices have forced many Canadians to accept that they may never be able to afford buying their own home.

When Gina Athanasiou's father died in 2016, she realized her mother, who bounced between Canada and Greece for most of her life, didn't have a pension large enough to cover the soaring costs of a Toronto home.