Mr. Speaker, the big banks are at it again, more branch closures, more services cut, more communities abandoned and the Liberal government stands by and lets it happen. Just when we thought the situation could not get any worse, along come the big banks to finish off the job.
Take Winnipeg for example. In the core of the city, the historic north end, entire older neighbourhoods have been virtually deserted by the banks. As we speak, residents in North Winnipeg are receiving letters from the Bank of Montreal announcing yet another closure and a shut down of the last accessible branch for an entire community of senior citizens, low income residents and working families. For this area alone, six branches in just three years are gone. As one senior said “It is as if we do not count”.
It is obscene for the bank to devastate the lives of our seniors while making record profits. What is even more outrageous is for this government to stand by and let it happen. Why do Liberals keep putting the needs of big corporations and banks ahead of the needs of the citizens of this land? Why does the government not hold the banks to account, instead of letting them strip the profits from neighbourhoods and leaving whole communities weakened and vulnerable.