Mr. Speaker, I believe the hon. member has some incorrect information on this. The present Criminal Code provides a maximum limit in the 60% range as the amount of interest that can be charged. The amounts of the loans are very small and these companies have to cover their administrative costs, registration and so on, but even charging $10 for one month on a loan of $200 is way over that limit. This bill would permit the provinces to regulate that and ensure there was no abuse of it. However, it still would allow these businesses, which do perform a valuable service, to carry on with their business.
Many firms do this. I received a little thing in the mail a couple of days ago from a retailer I will not identify, indicating that there would be no interest until next year. However, written in small letters underneath, it said a $15 service charge would apply. If we compute that as a rate of interest, it increases it considerably, although it is not called interest. This also needs to be regulated.
I gently correct the member to ensure that what she is talking about vis-à-vis this bill is accurate.