(File photo courtesy of © Can Stock Photo / Klementiev)(File photo courtesy of © Can Stock Photo / Klementiev)
Windsor

Funding cut creates a 'crisis in refugee and immigration law'

The executive director of Community Legal Aid and Legal Assistance of Windsor has accused the Ford government of creating a crisis for thousands of the province's most vulnerable residents.

Marion Overholt said a 30 per cent cut in funding for Ontario Legal Aid in last week's provincial budget will mean layoffs in Ontario's 72 legal aid clinics and drastic cuts to services. The reduction will mean a loss of $133 million province-wide, about 20 per cent of Ontario Legal Aid's total budget.

Overholt said she is not yet sure how many staff she will lose, but 90 per cent of her budget is salaries. The clinics also rely on volunteers; generally law and social work students.

The clinics help low-income residents obtain legal services to fight for social service benefits, maintain social housing and get repairs done, and assist workers to get wages owed. The funding cut comes at a time when the number of cases has ballooned from 1,200 assists the year before last, to 2,000 last year.

"Without our intervention, clients are going to have to navigate very complex legal systems without assistance, and they will likely not succeed," said Overholt. "These changes are being introduced at a time when they're looking at the definitions for Ontario Disability, making it more difficult for people."

She said Ontario Legal Aid, and clinics like the ones she runs were not consulted before the budget last Thursday.

"We're really hoping the government will take a second look," said Overholt.

In a move meant to force the federal government to provide more funding, the Ford government has also instructed legal aid not to accept most new refugee and immigration cases. Overholt said the federal government only provided $16 million for those assists last year, while the total cost was $45 million.

"There will be refugees going through a very complicated appeal process with absolutely no legal help," explained Overholt. "To try and navigate that system by themselves means that we're going to have people are deported who shouldn't have been -- That's a travesty."

Existing cases before the court will not be affected, and those seeking asylum will still have access to legal assistance.

While Overholt agrees with the Ford government that the federal government should provide more, she insisted a provincial funding cut is not the way to encourage Ottawa.

"Don't create a crisis. Don't cut people off at this point and abandon them," she said.

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