Ontario wants $200 million to cover costs of irregular refugees minister says

iPolitics.ca
July 24, 2018
Anna Desmarais

Ontario’s minister responsible for immigration wants the federal government to cut a cheque for $200 million to cover the cost of housing and caring for migrants in the province.

Lisa MacLeod, who appeared before a special session of the Commons Immigration committee dealing with the migrant crisis, said on Tuesday that the pressure of irregular refugees is “stretching” a system that was already tested by other demands.

“I have a $200 million price tag I need you guys to pay,” MacLeod said.

McLeod told the committee that $74 million alone is needed to fund the cost of maintaining Toronto’s shelter system. Another $90 million is earmarked for social assistance and welfare costs, $12 million is to cover growing demands for shelter in the city of Ottawa, $3 million to cover support services lent to the province by the Canadian Red Cross and $20 million for children’s education along  with legal aid bills.

MacLeod said the Ontario government receives $320 million in social assistance transfers but questions the need to use this provincial money to help refugee claimants.

“If you want to take [the money] away from the social transfers, I’d like to know which hospitals and which schools the government would like to close,” she said.

MacLeod said the federal government will receive a letter from the province, along with a itemized list into the costs associated with irregular migration, this afternoon. Immigration minister Ahmed Hussen told reporters he had not received a letter before committee was over at 5 p.m.

Her bill echoes a demand from all the provinces made at the Council of the Federation meeting when all the premiers signed an accord asking the federal government to take responsibility for the costs incurred by the provinces.

Liberal MP Adam Vaughan said $50 million recently given by the federal government to Manitoba, Ontario and Quebec was a “downpayment” to relieve the immediate pressures municipalities are facing from the influx of irregular migrants.

The $11 million for Toronto included in this payment was a “first instalment” with a second one coming when all three levels of government will be able to meet, he said.

MacLeod said she has not heard about more money coming to the province from the federal government but contended she will meet with federal Border Security minister Bill Blair soon to discuss other funding arrangements.

The Immigration committee was in special session on Tuesday as a result of a call to discuss the migrant crisis. After hearing from ministers Blair and Public Safety minister Ralph Goodale in the morning, the second session focused on immediate housing needs in Canadian municipalities.

Vaughan, who is the parliamentary secretary to the Minister of Families, Children and Social Development and has a responsibility for housing and urban affairs, was forced to clarify the federal government’s plan after new border security minister Bill Blair announced earlier today that 800 irregular refugee claimants will be housed in Toronto hotels.

“The plan here is not to house people in hotels, it is to move people to permanent housing,” he said. “We need to move cities outside of an emergency response to a permanent response.”

A spokesperson told iPolitics Tuesday afternoon after the committee session ended that the refugee claimants will be moved to permanent housing before September 30. They were facing eviction August 9 from several college dorms.

“I think this is an appropriate response,” Blair told committee early Tuesday morning.

By that time, the federal government is hoping to have a formal triage system in place that will move these refugee claimants from big cities like Toronto to other communities across the province better able to accommodate additional refugees.

The ministry said it is working directly with municipalities to create a list of municipalities open to taking more asylum claimants without the assistance of Premier Doug Ford’s office.

Immigration minister Ahmed Hussen reiterated to reporters after the committee meeting ended that the federal government  would welcome Ontario into the fold if the Ford government expressed interest.

“We need Ontario to be at the table to finalize things,” Hussen said. “We’re still hopeful that we (can) welcome Ontario back to the table so we can work together on this.”

In November, the Liberal government released a National Housing Strategy that will earmark $40 billion over the next 10 years to invest in housing. Within the strategy, there is a provision to decide how cities can rent houses and hotels as an emergency response.

Toronto has been using hotels to house families for the last 12 years, Vaughan said.

NDP immigration critic Jenny Kwan said affordable housing is needed across the board, but she noted that 90 per cent of the funds dedicated to the National Housing Plan will not flow until after next year’s federal election.

Goodale announced a few weeks ago that the federal government would continue to move forward to create a triage system in Ontario to help manage the influx of refugees, with or without the co-operation of the Ontario government.

“Right now we have one province that doesn’t want to participate,” Vaughan said.

The triage system will resemble the one already in place in Quebec, where people are placed in communities where housing is available. When housed, they will have access to social services like language courses and health care while they await their refugee hearing with the Immigration and Refugee Board.

Vaughan said the federal government has looked for other cities that have room to house families, including the Nipissing District Housing Corporation in North Bay. Other cities, like Ottawa and Orangeville, have expressed concern about taking in some additional refugee families because they are operating on 90 per cent capacity.