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MEDIA RELEASE

Tuesday, June 13, 2000

OTTAWA - Today, the Canadian Community Reinvestment Coalition (CCRC) called on Finance Minister Paul Martin to close key gaps in his proposed financial services legislation to ensure consumers, communities and businesses are protected from abuse by financial institutions. While Martin adopted the CCRC's proposals for an independent Financial Services Ombudsman, Public Accountability Statements for financial institutions, a right to a low-cost account, and protection from tied selling, he ignored the CCRC's proposals in other key areas.

In addition, in many consumer protection areas, the detailed rules that determine consumers' rights, and financial institutions' responsibilities, will not be known until regulations are passed after the bill becomes law.

"Paul Martin has plugged some holes by proposing bank accountability and consumer protection laws," said Duff Conacher, Coordinator of Democracy Watch and Chairperson of the CCRC, "But in key areas Martin has unfortunately left loopholes and protected Canada's big banks and other financial institutions, instead of protecting the public interest."

The CCRC called on Martin to respond to the broad support for the CCRC's proposed accountability measures and close gaps in his proposed law by requiring financial institutions to:

• Provide much more detail in the Public Accountability Statements on loans, investments and services community by community across the country and, as the U.S. has for over 20 years, grade the banks in each area, and require corrective action and penalize institutions that are not meeting customer needs.
• Go through a Public Interest Review process for mergers or takeovers of any financial institution and if an institution does not serve customers fairly and well it should be grounds to deny a merger or takeover, as in the U.S.
• Facilitate the creation of a consumer-funded and directed Financial Consumer Organization (FCO) by enclosing an FCO flyer in their mailings to customers.
• Undertake a detailed, mandatory review of any proposed branch closure.
• Limit holds on cheques, as in the U.S.
• Prove that they aren't gouging us with excessive credit card interest rates.