Mr. Speaker, on the subject of ethics, I wonder if the Minister of Justice thinks it is ethical to charge 500% annual interest on loans, or even legal. That is what money marts and pawn shops charge now that the chartered banks have abandoned their obligations to provide basic services to Canadians. In fact, 14 branches have closed in my riding alone.
If the government cannot or will not bring the banks into line, will it at least begin to enforce the usury provisions of the Criminal Code and put an end to this outrageous exploitation of low income people in the inner city of Winnipeg and other cities in Canada?