Ontario to provide $300M in housing, health supports for expected influx of Ukrainian refugees

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Ontario is pledging $300-million to provide health care services, emergency housing and a suite of other supports to an estimated 40,000 Ukrainian refugees.

Announcing the plan Wednesday morning, Premier Doug Ford said the government is welcoming residents fleeing Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and providing the critical supports they need to settle in the province.

This will include immediate access to health care through the Ontario Health Insurance Plan, mental-health services and drug benefits. Income support will also be available to those eligible through an application process. More than four million Ukrainians have fled their homes and are seeking shelter in other countries as a result of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February.

Last month, the federal government launched a program to help Ukrainians and their families come to Canada as quickly as possible with the ability to work and study. Through the Canada-Ukraine authorization for emergency travel, refugees are able to apply for a temporary visa and stay in Canada for up to three years at a time or until expiry of a passport.

Just shy of 12,000 people have already arrived in Canada, and 91,177 visa applications have been received. Ontario can expect around 40,000 people, Mr. Ford said.

The province will also launch a $1.9-million Ontario-Ukraine Solidarity Scholarship open to refugees who will be studying at a college or university on an emergency basis, and young students will be able to enroll in the province’s elementary school system.

Canadian-Ukrainian community organizations will receive $449,000 to offer trauma-informed counselling and cultural supports to families.

“The people of Ukraine will always be welcome here,” Mr. Ford said during the announcement at St. Demetrius Catholic School in Toronto’s Etobicoke neighbourhood. “We will have all the critical supports that these families will need once they arrive here in Ontario.”

Employment opportunities are also a key priority for the province, said Mr. Ford, noting there are hundreds of thousands of jobs to be filled.

Already more than 30,000 positions have been made available to newcomers through a dedicated hotline set up by the province. People looking for work can call 1-888-562-4769 or e-mail ukrainianjobs@ontario.ca to connect with job search assistance.

Labour, Training and Skills Development Minister Monte McNaughton said the high uptake of job offers speaks to the desire of Ontarians to help Ukrainians get on their feet.

“We do realize that it’s going to be primarily women and children coming in the beginning but employers have stepped up,” he said. “Companies and labour leaders have truly stepped up among all industries.”

Ukrainians applying for permanent residency through the province’s immigration nominee program are being prioritized.

The Ukrainian Canadian Congress welcomed the province’s aid in an effort to support refugees looking to settle in Ontario. Provincial council vice-president Irene Newton said the supports will go a long way to provide stability for families who have had their lives uprooted. Ontario is home to about 375,000 people of Ukrainian descent, the largest in Canada.

“This is all necessary to make our incoming families feel safe, secure and able to contribute to our Ukrainian-Canadian diaspora,” Ms. Newton said at Wednesday’s announcement. “We are ready, willing and able to continue our work with all parties to make life a little easier for our Ukrainian, war-displaced people.”

Other provinces have also stepped up to provide monetary supports, but not to the same degree as Ontario.

In Alberta, the government committed $11.3-million for humanitarian aid on the ground, including funding for defensive equipment. The province will also provide health coverage and prioritize the assessment of applications for permanent residency made by Ukrainian nationals through the Alberta Advantage Immigration Program.

The Quebec government provided $300,000 to two international organizations providing aid on the ground in Ukraine.

This isn’t the first time Ontario has provided supports to people seeking asylum. Under the previous Liberal government in 2015, the province invested $10.5-million over two years to welcome about 11,400 Syrian refugees with health care and housing needs.

But the funding announced Wednesday by the government is in contrast to its 2018 decision not to cover some of the shelter costs to support 3,000 refugees seeking asylum in Toronto. At the time, Mr. Ford said the federal government created a “mess” at the Canada-U.S. border and refused to provide financial aid.

Instead, the federal government provided $45-million to Toronto to address the housing shortages.

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