Mr. Speaker, given that the government's policy is to create jobs, and that this can only be achieved in a strong and growing economy, I find it hard to understand the Bank of Canada's decision to increase its rate, when there is no indication of a rise in inflation.
The chartered banks immediately doubled the rate increase set by the Bank of Canada. This could generate some concern among Canadians who, in the past, have been hard hit because of high interest rates, with a large number of businesses having to fold and many families nearly went going bankrupt because of high mortgage rates.
The government's policy of attempting to control our economy by manipulating interest rates must be questioned. It continues to cause our economy to lurch from boom to bust and by this every move turning the stock markets and serves only to make increased profits for financial—