The “meaningless” proposal to block international students from enrolling in medical schools in Ontario has been criticised as political point-scoring ahead of an upcoming election.
Amid a series of national restrictions curbing overseas study visas, the Ontario government has announced a number of new legislative and regulatory changes for the province’s medical schools.
If passed, premier Doug Ford’s legislation will ensure at least 95 per cent of all undergraduate medical school seats go to Ontario residents, and the other 5 per cent to those from other Canadian provinces.
Along with other recent moves, the ban has increased speculation that Mr Ford is planning on calling an early election in 2025.
“This is an announcement from a premier who is preparing to call an election at some point in the not-too-distant future,” Glen Jones, professor of higher education at the University of Toronto, told Times Higher Education.
“The shortage of family practitioners and other shortcomings in our healthcare system has been receiving some media attention, and this announcement is clearly designed to demonstrate that the premier is putting the needs of his province first.”
However, official figures show that just a tiny fraction of the province’s medical students are currently from abroad – about 10 of the approximately 3,800 cohort.
Professor Jones said that the implications of the announcement, which would take effect in autumn 2026, were “rather meaningless”.
“The Ontario government has always tightly monitored and controlled the number of medical students, in large part of course because we have a public medical system, and graduates will primarily work within this public system.”
While the impact of the decision will be modest, he added that the message it sent would not help the national caps already announced.
The ban is the latest curb on international students in Canada, including limiting the number of study visas, introducing higher wealth requirements and bringing in new working regulations.
Given the low numbers of foreign medical students in Ontario, Alex Usher, president of Higher Education Strategy Associates, said the only reason behind the ban was to send a message to voters – calling it “cheap populism in the run-up to an election”.
“The specific move of banning students in medicine is not really a danger when the stakes are so low,” added Mr Usher. “The larger danger is demonisation of international students in general. They’re a convenient scapegoat for provincial government failings in housing, especially in Ontario.”
The provincial government said its actions were designed to ensure Ontario medical schools are training and graduating doctors who are significantly more likely to practice in the region.
It also announced a review of the visa trainee programme, which trains international students sponsored by foreign governments, to “further protect training capacity for Ontario students”.
James Oloo, assistant professor in educational administration, policy and leadership at the University of Waterloo, said it was likely that other provinces will follow Ontario’s lead.
“However, when you look at the big picture – such as an estimated 10 per cent of Canadians not having a family doctor – the issue is not how many international students get admission to Canadian medical schools,” he added. “There is an over-reliance on internationally trained medical professionals across Canada.”
The provincial government is also investing $88 million (£49 million) over three years to expand grants for 1,360 eligible undergraduate students who commit to practise family medicine with a full roster of patients once they graduate.
Dominik Nowak, president of the Ontario Medical Association, said the decisions were a “meaningful step toward ensuring that more Ontarians can access family doctors close to home”.
