Ontario’s College of Physicians and Surgeons has received more than 260 applications from Quebec doctors to work across the river, following the implementation of a controversial law restructuring doctors’ pay in La Belle Province according to CBC News. Law 2, which came into force in late October, ties a percentage of doctors’ pay to performance metrics, which numerous doctors’ associations have denounced as “draconian”.

The number of applications is 13 times higher than the amount received this time last year, and is largely thought to be spurred by the law’s creation.

Earlier this month, four department heads announced their resignations from regional health authority CISSSO in protest of the law. The CISSSO for its part has created a “crisis unit” to help its doctors deal with the stress of the situation, according to Radio-Canada.

Quebec looks to cut social assistance payments to asylum seekers

The government of Quebec is aiming to cut social assistance to asylum seekers who have not found work.

Immigration Minister Jean-François Roberge said that while they had ruled out such a reduction last fall, they have received 40,000 asylum applications since then, calling Quebec “far too attractive”.

“In the long run, the Quebec government will significantly reduce social assistance to encourage these individuals to move to another province to find employment or receive social assistance,” Roberge said according to La Presse, though he did not offer more details.

Roberge also stated without evidence that 50 per cent of asylum seekers with a work permit are not currently employed, though his office corrected that the number is not currently known.

He urged the federal government to reimburse the province $722 million, which he said is what asylum seekers cost Quebec in 2024. Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada responded that Quebec had already received $867 million in 2025, and over $581 million in 2024-2025 for costs related to the influx of asylum seekers.

Parti Québécois unveils currency plan for an independent Quebec

The separatist Parti Québécois (PQ) has released its plan for Quebec’s currency should the province become independent from Canada.

Leader Paul St-Pierre Plamondon made this announcement at the party’s national convention in Sherbrooke on Saturday, laying out a 10-year timeline for how such a decision would be made. It calls for an independent commission to study the issue, and commits to following the recommendations of the expert panel. The PQ notes that it also considered keeping the Canadian dollar or switching to American dollars.

St-Pierre Plamondon, whose party is currently leading in the polls ahead of next year’s provincial election, told the Montreal Gazette that one of the goals of the plan is to ease Quebecer’s fears around the possibility of independence. They are promising a referendum on the issue within their first mandate if they win next fall.

The announcement is the second chapter that has been made public from the party’s “blue book”, or strategy document for independence. The first chapter, covering international relations, was released the previous week.

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