Mr. Speaker, my question is also for the Minister of Finance. It concerns the volatility in the current stock markets in this country.
A larger than ever number of Canadians are borrowing money in order to speculate on the stock markets and we have also seen an explosion in unregulated derivatives which could threaten the stability of our financial system.
In view of the excessive exposure of our system to speculation, can the minister assure the House that the Canadian financial system is secure and that the public will not pay for speculation through a rise in interest rates which will affect every single Canadian in this country?