NDP: Ford government can and should restore fairness to the OINP

QUEEN’S PARK — Ontario NDP Shadow Minister for Citizenship and Multiculturalism Alexa Gilmour (Parkdale—High Park), Shadow Attorney General Kristyn Wong-Tam (Toronto Centre), and Deputy Leader Doly Begum (Scarborough Southwest) are advocating for the workers that have been shut out of the Ontario Immigrant Nominee Program (OINP), with no transparency as to why.

In November, over 2,600 applications were suspended, with Labour Minister David Piccini — who currently faces a separate Integrity Commissioner investigation — alleging widespread fraud. Last week, 59 applications were reevaluated and approved, indicating that the Ministry is capable of individual evaluation.

“These workers followed every rule; paying fees and taxes, building lives in Ontario while contributing to our economy,” said Gilmour. “Their employers need them and despite this, all their applications were returned, cruelly upending families, communities, and businesses."

“I have heard from countless workers who are terrified of the future. This is urgent. 2025 cannot end without Doug Ford and his scandal-ridden Labour Minister reinstating these applications, evaluating each one individually and fairly.”

“Ontario’s economy is being held back, not by a lack of talent, but by Doug Ford’s refusal to take action,” said Wong-Tam. “These workers, their employers, and their families are suffering the consequences."

“While Ford enjoys a 14-week holiday, applicants are stuck in limbo. He and the Labour Minister must reinstate these applications, restoring a fair and transparent process."

"This government’s lack of transparency in the OINP approval process has left thousands of applicants across diverse professions in uncertainty,” said Begum.

“These are people who contribute to our province every day, yet are being treated as expendable, with no clarity whatsoever."

ADDITIONAL QUOTES:

“Among us is a woman who is pregnant. Day after day, she comes here asking for just one thing: justice. Not favours. Not shortcuts. Justice. “Another applicant standing with us has a father fighting Stage Four cancer. "Instead of being with his father, he is here — outside a government office — asking for answers. Ask yourself: is this where a son should be? He cannot even return home freely. Not because he refuses to, but because leaving now risks carrying a permanent stain without ever being heard. “We are not asking for sympathy. We are asking for fairness.”

— Abhishek Kanojia, OINP applicant