-----Original Message----- From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Action Alert listserve Sent: Tuesday, December 15, 2009 9:53 PM To: [email protected] Subject: Canada's Big Banks report $15 Billion in Profits and $6 Billion in bonuses: stop Banksters from Gouging the masses
ACTION ALERT - Help stop banks gouging and their unfair and irresponsible actions PLEASE PASS THIS MESSAGE ON to anyone interested in bank accountability and/or corporate responsibility in Canada PLEASE SUPPORT the campaign for increased bank accountability and responsibility in Canada by SENDING THE LETTER BELOW to federal politicians, and/or BY DONATING NOW at: http://www.dwatch.ca/camp/support.html (NOTE: an income tax-reducing receipt is available for donations to research and education activities) ********* Dear Friend, Canada's big banks have just reported a record $15 billion in profits, and more than $6 billion in bonuses for their executives for the past year, a year in which federal politicians bailed out the banks and other financial institutions with up to $200 billion in subsidies (while keeping secret exactly which banks received exactly how much of our money)! The banks have these record profits because of excessively high credit card interest rates and gouging service charges, and from imposing interest rate hikes on lines of credit and loans for individuals and businesses across the country -- at the same time the banks' cost of raising money decreased to the lowest level ever in Canadian history (0.25 percent interest for them while they charge you 19 percent or more on credit card balances until you pay off the last dollar)! In response, the federal Conservatives proposed rules which only require more clear disclosure of how much you are being gouged, a couple of new rules that will save a few consumers a few dollars (but won't come into effect until next September), and a voluntary code covering relations between credit card companies and small businesses (yes, a voluntary code, with no enforcement and no penalties for violations)! To their credit, the federal NDP, Liberals and Bloc have all proposed stronger measures, but not strong enough to protect consumers effectively from gouging, nor to empower consumers and ensure accountability for unfair, abusive or irresponsible services, lending or investments by the banks and other financial institutions. Canada's big banks also continue to use our money to support polluting and irresponsible big businesses that cause harm to people, communities and the environment in Canada and around the world. Democracy Watch and the Canadian Community Reinvestment Coalition (CCRC) have been leading the campaign in Canada for increased bank accountability and responsibility since for the past 15 years. Your support has helped win some key changes, but more changes are needed to make our banks use our money responsibly, and serve everyone fairly at fair prices. SO PLEASE SUPPORT the campaign for increased bank accountability and responsibility in Canada by SENDING THE LETTER BELOW to federal politicians, and/or BY DONATING NOW at: http://www.dwatch.ca/camp/support.html Thank you and happy holidays, Duff Conacher, Coordinator of Democracy Watch Chairperson of the CCRC http://www.cancrc.org ********* ACTION LETTER You can see the Action Letter set out below with links to key documents at: http://www.cancrc.org/english/Draftletter.html PLEASE SEND the letter by email to all the federal party leaders, the Finance Minister, and key MPs and Senators at: [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected] OR by mail to the above politicians and your MP (no stamp needed) to: House of Commons Ottawa K1A 0A6 And please add to the letter your personal examples of unfair treatment you have received by Canada's big banks and/or ways in which you think the banks act irresponsibly or unfairly. Dear Prime Minister Harper / Finance Minister Flaherty / Opposition Party leader / Key MPs and Senators: The federal government strengthened bank accountability by including some good measures Bill C-8 (passed in June 2001). However, some key gaps were left that made it difficult to ensure banks and other financial institutions serve all Canadians fairly and well and use our money responsibly, and Bill C-37 (passed in 2007) did little to close these gaps. The banks recorded $16 billion in losses and writedowns in 2008 because of their own risky and irresponsible lending, and all the federal government has done is offer them subsidies of up to $200 billion, without requiring the banks to do anything return in terms of better service or prices for customers, and more responsible lending and investing. As a result of the subsidies, and interest rate and fee increases imposed by the banks this year, the banks have just recorded almost $15 billion in annual profits, and given their executives more than $6 billion in bonuses. I'm writing to urge you and the federal government to make the changes needed to ensure our big banks meet our needs, lend and invest our money responsibly, and remain Canadian-owned and controlled. The following key changes must be made to ensure better Canadian big banks: 1. Facilitate the creation of a Financial Consumer Organization (FCO) to help consumers (as recommended by the Task Force on the Future of the Canadian Financial Services Sector and a House and Senate committee in 1998), and an Individual Investor Organization (IIO), by requiring banks and other financial institutions to enclose an FCO information pamphlet in their mailings to customers, and an IIO information pamphlet in their mailings to shareholders, with both pamphlets inviting people to join the watchdog groups at a nominal annual membership fee. 2. Require banks and trust companies to provide detailed information on loans, investments and services to customers, as required in the U.S (to track whether banks are fairly meeting the needs of individuals and businesses on a community-by-community level and, as in the U.S., require corrective action if banks are not meeting customer needs). 3. Empower the Competition Bureau and Financial Consumer Agency of Canada (FCAC) to conduct an audit of profits from service charges and credit card interest rates, and reduction in competition community-by-community across Canada, and savings from closing branches and firing tellers, over the past 15 years, and require banks to cut charges and open branches if past profits were excessive; 4. Prohibit any future service charge or credit card interest rate increases if the bank can't prove the increase is justified; 5. Require banks and trust companies to disclose the profit/loss record for any branch proposed to be closed, to allow for a full review of the reasons for the closure; 6. Require banks and trust companies to prove that they have a fair, responsible and very good service, lending and investment record every year for the past 10 years as a mandatory condition for any financial institution bidding on federal government contracts; 7. Require the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada Commissioner to disclose the name of the financial institution and the terms of settlement whenever the Commissioner finds that an institution has violated the law (currently, the Commissioner can only disclose the name of the institution if the Commissioner prosecutes the institution), and change the complaint process so that consumers can complain directly to the Ombudsman for Banking Services at any time without having to go first to their bank's ombudsman; 8. Give customers access to the money they deposit by cheque as soon as the cheque clears, and; 9. Given that each of the big banks makes billions of dollars each year, increase the maximum penalty for violating the Bank Act from the too-low amount of $200,000 to the more effective penalty of $50 million. Canadians have made it clear in every poll conducted over the past 15 years that they need, and want, better banks. Please close these gaps by passing a law to ensure that all financial institutions in Canada serve all Canadians fairly and well, and can be held accountable for poor lending, investment or service records. And please do not let Canada's banks take over any other financial institution, or merge together, before you have set up the Financial Consumer Organization and the Individual Investor Organization, and the strict bank lending, investment and service disclosure and evaluation system outlined above. Please let me know what steps you are taking to introduce bills to close these bank accountability loopholes, to pledging in your party's election platform to close these loopholes. My vote in the next federal election will very much depend on your response. I look forward to hearing from you. Sincerely, (put your name, postal address and email address here) ********* PLEASE SEND a copy of your letter to <[email protected]> PLEASE PASS THIS MESSAGE ON to anyone interested in bank accountability and/or corporate responsibility in Canada AND PLEASE DONATE NOW to bank accountability at: http://www.dwatch.ca/camp/support.html (NOTE: an income tax-reducing receipt is available for donations to research and education activities) Thank you again for your support! If you have any questions or concerns about this Action Alert, please contact Duff Conacher at: [email protected] *** exposing the hidden truth for further educational research only *** CAVEAT LECTOR *** In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. NOTE: Some links may require cut and paste into your Internet Browser. 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