Legislation & Public Policies

OCASI has prepared a preliminary analysis of Bill C-24, the Citizenship amendment Act tabled in the House of Commons on Thursday February 6, 2014. We will develop a fuller analysis as we continue to review the Bill and prepare for public comment opportunities through the Parliamentary Standing Committee later in the year.

The government has already doubled the citizenship application fees from $200 to $400. The change is already in effect and will remain so regardless of what happens to Bill C-24.

Comme organisme engagé dans les droits des personnes et l'équité, OCASI- Ontario Council of Agencies Serving Immigrants est profondément préoccupé par le fait que la Charte des valeurs québécoises proposée, va discriminer et marginaliser les femmes et les hommes appartenant aux groupes et communautés en quête d'équité.

As an organization committed to human rights and equity, OCASI – Ontario Council of Agencies Serving Immigrants is deeply concerned that the proposed Quebec Charter of Values will discriminate against and marginalize women and men from equity-seeking groups and communities.

The Minimum Wage Advisory Panel in Ontario has begun public consultations on the minimum wage. Consultations are to be completed by October 18, 2013.

The purpose of the consultations is to receive input and comments on issues raised in a consultation paper that was released on July 17, 2013. The Advisory Panel is seeking input through 9 specific questions detailed in the consultation paper.

In response to drastic cuts to the Interim Federal Health (IFH) program in Canada, 2012 was marked by historic mobilizations where health care workers and allies took to the streets, occupied Conservative MP offices,

With the implementation of the cuts to the Interim Federal Health (IFH) program in June 2012, there has been a significant amount of confusion around the coverage of health care for refugees and refugee claimants.  

OCASI Policy Webinar Series

This series is an OCASI public education initiative on the impact of public policy and legislation on immigrants and refugees, delivered by experts in the field.

December 18 is International Migrants' Day. In Canada there is much to reflect on. The strides we've made over the past decades in creating a nation that is welcoming, that values the contribution of immigrants and that takes its obligation to protecting those in need of asylum and refuge seriously.

The Commission for the Review of Social Assistance in Ontario released its final report at the end of October 2012. Frances Lankin and Dr. Munir Sheikh were appointed to the Commission in November 2010 to review Ontario Works (OW) and Ontario Disability Support Program (ODSP). The Commission was appointed as part of a commitment by the provincial government in its 2008 Poverty Reduction Strategy, to review social assistance.

In July of 2012, OCASI was invited by the Committe for the Rights of the Child, an independent body which monitors the implementation of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC), to submit a shadow report on the state of children's rights in Canada. This report was presented in Geneva, Switzerland in the Fall of 2012.