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Thomson Report: CA Institute welcomes dialogue on internationally trained professionals
CAs set standard for access, look forward to consulting on report
TORONTO: November 10, 2005 - A new report released today on access to Ontario's regulated professions for internationally trained applicants is a valuable starting point for addressing the issue, according to the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Ontario, which now looks forward to working with the government to develop a strategy for achieving common goals.
In Review of Appeals Processes from Registration Decisions in Ontario's Regulated Professions, National Judicial Institute Executive Director George Thomson reports on the ability of internationally trained professionals to access the workforce.
"We support helping internationally trained professionals use their skills in Ontario. Our province depends on developing a workforce that reflects the world in which we do business," said Institute President and CEO Brian Hunt, FCA. "We look forward to joining the other self-regulating professions in reviewing the recommendations of the Thomson Report."
Hunt notes that, in the case of the CA profession, the access process for internationally trained professionals is already at best practice levels. In January 2005, a 'report card' issued by the Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities ranked the Institute second among 10 professional bodies evaluated, in terms of their response to barriers identified by internationally trained professionals.
For more than two decades, the CA profession has been acknowledged by the Ontario government as leading the way in ensuring that access. Former Citizenship Minister Bob Wong said in 1989:
"It is very encouraging to see a group such as the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Ontario taking the vital step towards improving fair access to the profession of accounting. I am very interested to see if your example will be followed by the other self-governing occupations."
In December 2003, the Honourable Mary Ann Chambers, MPP, Minister of Training, Colleges and Universities, wrote:
"The Ministry recognizes the role the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Ontario has played to improve access for internationally trained accountants, including working with the Ministry on an occupational fact sheet, the Sector-specific Terminology Information and Counseling Project, and the CD-based Competency Matching Tool. As well, senior staff from your organization play a leadership role on the Ontario Regulators for Access Steering Committee."
Other highlights of the Institute's record include:
- Participation in the International Qualifications Appraisal Board, which assesses the qualification standards of accounting bodies in other countries against Canadian CA standards to provide access to qualified applicants
- A transparent registration and appeals processes that includes full participation by public representatives (persons who are not accountants) as voting members
- Working with accounting bodies in other countries - including many in Latin America, Southeast Asia and the Pacific Rim - to help them achieve standards equal to those in Canada.
"The Institute is already seen by the Ontario government as doing a solid job of providing access to foreign trained professionals," said Hunt. However, neither employers nor the self-regulated professions can do it all themselves, Hunt added, noting factors that are beyond their reach, including better coordination of immigrant services and programs between Ottawa and the provinces, and enhanced university access.
"We all want new Canadians to succeed," Hunt concluded. "Let's build on our progress with a realistic system of standardized best practices that identifies achievable goals."
About the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Ontario:
The Institute of Chartered Accountants of Ontario is the qualifying and regulatory body of Ontario's over 31,000 CAs and 3,500 CA students. Since 1879, the Institute has protected the public interest through the CA profession's high standards of qualification and the enforcement of its rules of professional conduct.
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For more information please contact:
Perry Jensen
The Institute of Chartered Accountants of Ontario
Direct: 416-969-4271
Toll free: 1-800-387-0735 ext. 271
E-mail: pjensen@icao.on.ca