diff --git a/build/virtualenv/populate_virtualenv.py b/build/virtualenv/populate_virtualenv.py
index cea9f2a65f2..896e83447d9 100755
--- a/build/virtualenv/populate_virtualenv.py
+++ b/build/virtualenv/populate_virtualenv.py
@@ -13,26 +13,10 @@ import shutil
 import subprocess
 import sys
 
-from distutils.version import StrictVersion
-
 
 # Minimum version of Python required to build.
-MINIMUM_PYTHON_VERSION = StrictVersion('2.7.3')
 MINIMUM_PYTHON_MAJOR = 2
-
-
-UPGRADE_WINDOWS = '''
-Please upgrade to the latest MozillaBuild development environments. See
-https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Developer_Guide/Build_Instructions/Windows_Prerequisites
-'''.lstrip()
-
-UPGRADE_OTHER = '''
-Run |mach bootstrap| to ensure your system is up to date.
-
-If you still receive this error, your shell environment is likely detecting
-another Python version. Ensure a modern Python can be found in the paths
-defined by the $PATH environment variable and try again.
-'''.lstrip()
+MINIMUM_PYTHON_MINOR = 7
 
 
 class VirtualenvManager(object):
@@ -359,20 +343,13 @@ class VirtualenvManager(object):
 
 def verify_python_version(log_handle):
     """Ensure the current version of Python is sufficient."""
-    major, minor, micro = sys.version_info[:3]
-
-    our = StrictVersion('%d.%d.%d' % (major, minor, micro))
-
-    if major != MINIMUM_PYTHON_MAJOR or our < MINIMUM_PYTHON_VERSION:
-        log_handle.write('Python %s or greater (but not Python 3) is '
-            'required to build. ' % MINIMUM_PYTHON_VERSION)
-        log_handle.write('You are running Python %s.\n' % our)
-
-        if os.name in ('nt', 'ce'):
-            log_handle.write(UPGRADE_WINDOWS)
-        else:
-            log_handle.write(UPGRADE_OTHER)
+    major, minor = sys.version_info[:2]
 
+    if major != MINIMUM_PYTHON_MAJOR or minor < MINIMUM_PYTHON_MINOR:
+        log_handle.write('Python %d.%d or greater (but not Python 3) is '
+            'required to build. ' %
+            (MINIMUM_PYTHON_MAJOR, MINIMUM_PYTHON_MINOR))
+        log_handle.write('You are running Python %d.%d.\n' % (major, minor))
         sys.exit(1)