Wynne steps up pressure on federal government to accept more Syrian refugees

‘We have more capacity in Ontario to take more refugees,’ says Kathleen Wynne as health minister Dr. Eric Hoskins pledges $300,000 of provincial money

Thestar.com
Sept. 8, 2015
By Rob Ferguson and Richard J. Brennan

Ontario is pressing the federal government to bring 5,000 Syrian refugees to Canada by the end of the year, with the province offering to accept and resettle half of them.

“We have more capacity in Ontario to take more refugees, to welcome more refugees,” Premier Kathleen Wynne told reporters Tuesday before her immigration minister outlined steps the government will take.

In addition to providing $300,000 to the local Lifeline Syria organization last week, Ontario is exploring ways it can support organizations and citizens who want to sponsor Syrian refugees and support them upon arrival.

“While Ontario cannot directly sponsor refugees, we will work with partners to identify how best to support those groups who are trying to bring Syrian refugees to Ontario,” Immigration Minister Michael Chan said in a statement.

That could include a provincial fund that would help cover the costs, Chan added, promising more details soon.

“This is the right thing to do and it is the Canadian thing to do.”

Conservative Leader Stephen Harper has deflected growing calls for the federal government to act more quickly on the admission of Syrian refugees.

Ontario is also calling on the federal government to set a larger, longer-term goal of bringing a total of 10,000 Syrian refugees to Canada as the exodus from the war-ravaged Mideast nation continues.

Wynne said she is working with her own church to raise money to help Syrian refugees and understands the frustrations over the length of time it is taking for refugees to get their documentation.

“My hope would be that we will see the federal government work with the provinces to speed up the process whereby refugees can come into the country and into our province,” she added.

“The bottom (line) for me is that all of us across the country need to be doing everything we can to help in this humanitarian crisis.”

Chan is pushing for an “emergency” conference call with federal and provincial cabinet ministers this week to identify how provinces can work with Ottawa to bring more displaced Syrians to Canada.

Ontario Health Minister Eric Hoskins, who announced the $300,000 for Lifeline Syria on Friday, on Tuesday said the federal government’s response on bringing Syrian refugees to Canada has been “woefully slow to date” given the public support to do something quickly.

“This can’t be a partisan issue ... we all need to work together but the federal government probably has the most important role to play in terms of speeding up the process whereby individuals are accepted and resettled. We have done it before and we can do it again.”

Hoskins said the federal Liberal government, during the 1999 Kosovo crisis when he worked as an adviser to then foreign affairs minister Lloyd Axworthy, decided within a month to bring 5,000 refugees to Canada.