The Media Roundup provides links to recent and archived articles, in both English and French, on immigration and diversity appearing in the national and local news. Some international content is also included. Articles are updated weekly.
London Free Press – International Students Pay Hefty Tuitions
London’s Catholic schools and post-secondary institutions will start selling themselves together to international students, hoping to cash in on the hefty tuition those from abroad pay. The hope is that students will come to London District Catholic school board high schools for Grade 11 and 12 with a conditional acceptance from King’s University College or Brescia University College. “If you come here in Grade 11 or 12, you increase your chances of success because you’ve done the Ontario curriculum, you’ve interacted with our students and we’ve taken away some of the unknowns,” said Linda Staudt, school board director of education. […] International high school students pay $13,400 tuition to attend a London Catholic high school. The province gives school boards $10,500 for each domestic high school student. Although there are only a handful of international students studying at Catholic high schools, both the Catholic and Thames Valley District school boards have started intensive recruitment drives to capitalize on global interest in learning English, particularly from Chinese students. Last year the public school board had 21 elementary and 77 high school students from other countries studying in its schools. The Catholic partnership is unique as high school students will be recruited directly, mainly from China, by the International Education Centre of London.
Globe and Mail – Refugee Advocates Blast Proposed Changes to Welfare in Budget Bill
Provincial welfare changes in the Conservative government’s latest budget bill are prompting fear that refugee claimants will lose access to social assistance and the cash-strapped groups that house and feed them may be unable to keep their doors open. […] The change is part of a broader push to crack down on what the government says are “bogus asylum seekers.” It follows a similar move related to the denial of health-care benefits that was struck down this summer in Federal Court as “cruel and unusual punishment” and unconstitutional. Ottawa is appealing the decision. The Canadian Council for Refugees and Canada Without Poverty condemned the bill’s changes Tuesday. […] Immigration Minister Chris Alexander defended the changes during Question Period in the House of Commons Tuesday. He focused his comments on the fact that accepted refugees would not be affected, but did not discuss the impact on refugee claimants.
Globe and Mail – Number of Low-Skilled Temporary Foreign Workers Rose Despite Push to Curtail Program
The number of low-skill temporary foreign workers entering Canada continued to grow in the first quarter of 2014 despite government efforts to reduce the impact of the controversial program. Through the end of March, the number admitted was up by more than 6 per cent compared with the same period the year before, to 14,216, according to preliminary estimates from Citizenship and Immigration Canada. The continued growth in this section of the program, after a suite of reforms in 2013, may have influenced the government’s decision to announce strict new rules four months ago, changes that have brought criticism from business groups concerned they’ll be unable to meet their labour needs. […] The rise in low-skill workers entering in 2014 is part of a pattern of growth in recent years, as their numbers grew by 22 per cent from a little more than 45,000 in 2010 to more than 55,000 in 2013. The new measures announced by the government in June are intended to make it more difficult to import TFWs, but figures that might reflect the impact of those changes aren’t yet available.
Windsor Star – University Backs Second Look at Funding for Foreign Graduate Students
The University of Windsor is supporting an initiative by the Ontario government and other universities to reconsider the hot-button issue of funding spots for foreign graduate students. The two sides have already had some discussions and more talks are planned. “I think there’s an increasing recognition that a lot of international students are coming to study and staying in Ontario,” said Alan Wildeman, president and vice-chancellor of the University of Windsor. “The province has opened the door to having more discussion on how we support and fund international students. I don’t think they’ve made a decision on this. It’s more, ‘Let’s talk.’ That’s a conversation we want to have at the University of Windsor.” The university receives a $27,500 government grant per domestic graduate student and collects an average tuition fee of $8,000. The average tuition for international graduate is $20,000, but there are no government grants for foreign students.
Guelph Mercury – Guelph Newcomer Health Fair Opens Eyes to Services Offered in the City
Dozens of newcomers to Canada filed through the Guelph Newcomer Health Fair at the Shelldale Centre Saturday afternoon to learn about the health services available to them in the city — the primary goal of the event. But local organizations also learned about each other and there is growing awareness of the challenges newcomers face as they enter and try to navigate the health care system, said an organizer. “I’m excited by the partnerships,” said Samantha Blostein, with the group Growing Community Health. “The agencies have become more aware of these people and how they can help them. In my view, that already makes it a success.” Blostein said landed immigrants, refugees, international students, and migrant workers each face different challenges in accessing health services. […] Visitors to the fair could have HIV and STI testing done on site, could fill out an application for a family doctor, could get free assessments from chiropractors and orthotic specialists, and could even get a flu shot. They could also speak with representatives from some 30 health care organizations at the fair thanks to a number of translators, who helped with that communication.
Global News – Omnibus Budget Bill Restricts Refugee Access to Social Assistance
Buried in the Harper government’s latest massive, omnibus budget bill is legislation that could restrict the ability of refugee claimants to access social assistance. […] The government has essentially adopted as its own a private member’s bill introduced last month by Conservative backbencher Corneliu Chisu. It is proposing to amend the legislation governing federal transfer payments to provinces for social programs. That legislation currently forbids provinces from imposing a minimum residency requirement before a refugee claimant can become eligible for social assistance. The budget implementation bill would lift the prohibition on minimum residency, which was intended to ensure a national standard for supporting refugee claimants in need. […] A spokesman for Immigration Minister Chris Alexander defended the notion of restricting refugees’ access to social assistance in essentially the same language the government used to justify limiting their access to health care. “Canada has the most fair and generous immigration system in the world,” said Kevin Menard. “However, Canadians have no tolerance for those who take unfair advantage of our generosity.”
