TORONTO, October 31(Canadian Press) - Canada is following in Australia's footsteps and is suspending visa applications for residents and nationals of the West African countries battling Ebola.

The federal government signaled it would stop issuing visas in the worker, student or visitor class and won't issue any pending permanent residency visas for people from those countries either.

Any applications already in the system will also not be processed at this time. The change, which goes into effect immediately, was announced today in the Canada Gazette.

A spokesperson for the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration says the move is similar to but a bit less restrictive than the one the Australian government announced this week.

That move was criticized Thursday by Dr. Margaret Chan, the director general of the World Health Organization, who said closing borders will not stop the spread of the Ebola virus.
LINA