Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank my colleague from Pictou—Antigonish—Guysborough for his erudite comments.
The issue of money laundering is one that no Canadian should underestimate. The fact that the estimates range between a $5 billion problem to as high as a $20 billion problem speaks volumes about the degree to which we really do not have a very good handle on the scale of the problem. What we do realize is its impact on facilitating and enabling organized crime in any range of applications, whether it is in particular on the side of the narcotics trade, is significant.
We should also not underestimate the degree to which significant resources are needed to fighting money laundering. In recent years we have seen an exponential increase in the range and complexity of financial vehicles available to criminals.
When we talk about organized crime, we are not talking about underfunded agencies. We are talking about some of the most sophisticated, well funded groups in the world with international linkages and the economies of scale to attract and to invest in the very best technologies. That is why, whatever we do in terms of new agencies and new approaches to money laundering, we have to ensure that the funds are committed to our RCMP and our enforcement capabilities. Otherwise all that will occur is the government will take baby steps in the right direction but really not achieve the goals of reducing the incidents of organized crime and money laundering, which should of course be the goal of the legislation. The government has had a terrible record of underfunding, the RCMP for instance. Clearly while new agencies and new approaches might be helpful, if they are underfunded, it will not achieve the goals that the government has attached to this legislation.
We have some concerns relative to issues of privacy and the member for Pictou—Antigonish—Guysborough articulated some of those concerns. It is important as well to ensure that the new agency's mandate and efforts are separated assiduously from those of the Canada Customs and Revenue Canada Agency. If the customs and revenue agency sees evidence of money laundering, it may be appropriate to refer some cases to this new agency to deal with money laundering.
That being the case, what we want to avoid in those cases where this agency has not found sufficient evidence of money laundering but may find some evidence relative to inappropriate behaviours relative to one's taxes, is the agency to result in a souped-up Revenue Canada to sink its teeth a little deeper into the ankles of Canadian taxpayer.
The issues of enforcement, and particularly the onus being placed on financial institutions, will be one that will be very difficult from an enforcement perspective and from a privacy perspective. We have to be awfully careful in this regard that a significant level of education occurs at the outset and that our financial institutions are prepared on a consistent basis throughout various financial institutions and throughout a branch of networks to carry out the mandate of this legislation. I suggest to the government that this will be a significant challenge and that the government has to be prepared.
The government has to be prepared to invest significantly in technologically driven approaches to deal with money laundering. Again, we are not dealing with amateurs. These are not underfunded agencies and local yokels who are doing a bit of criminal activities and do not really have the resources to carry on their activities. The government is fighting some of the best funded organizations in the world.
I would argue that we need to engage other countries more actively than we are right now in a co-operative effort. Clearly, money laundering and electronic transfers of money do not recognize borders, particularly if one were to consider just for a moment the impact of even the Interac system and its impact on the ability to launder money, to hide transactions and to break really large transactions into a multitude of smaller ones.
I am sure many of us in the House use online banking sometimes and I would suggest all of us probably use our bank cards. However, consider in the wrong hands and with nefarious motives what extraordinarily powerful tools the Interac system and online banking are. These are the simplest consumer available technologies of which we are aware. We are not even considering some of the extraordinarily powerful technologies being used in the mysterious world of arbitrage and currency trading.
If we are not very careful to ensure the necessary resources are committed to this fight, then we are sending this new agency, our RCMP and others into battle with pellet guns which will not be in the long term interest of the effort to reduce the incidence of money laundering and organized crime.
Accountability is of real importance. There is concern about the growing trend toward agencies which the government has pushed in recent years. The Canada Customs and Revenue Agency and the new money laundering agencies are not very accountable.
We must ensure, particularly in areas of privacy, that we do not create agencies that are able to run roughshod over the rights of Canadians. At the same time, however, agencies must have the resources and ability to do their jobs. It is a balancing act. I hope the government has a good understanding of what it will be up against with the new agency.
We must invest properly and make sure the accountability is there to protect ordinary, law-abiding Canadians. However resources must also be committed to ensuring Canadians who do not take the law seriously, who participate in money laundering and globally powerful organized crime networks, are caught and dealt with.
Those are some of our concerns. The legislation, like so much of the government's legislation, represents a baby step in the right direction. However given the power of organized crime globally and the resources available to it, we are taking baby steps in the right direction while the forces we battle are taking gigantic leaps. We are not making the progress we should be making in this place to ensure that money laundering and organized crime are dealt with effectively in Canada.