Finance committee  One could add that right now the market is dysfunctional. The market forces are not working. Since 1996, when the Competition Tribunal decided to open up the market to improve competition, prices have gone up. We're therefore not in a market where the rules are working very well.

Finance committee  Right now we're in a market that does not work well. We're in a dysfunctional market, because the more competition there is, the more expensive things get.

Finance committee  That's why we need regulations. In 2002, there was a regulation to force the banks to open bank accounts. Access was therefore regulated by forcing the banks, under certain conditions, to open accounts. Right now, we're asking the same thing: that there be regulation to oversee fees, because this has become a problem of access, especially for low-income people in rural areas.

Finance committee  At the moment, one third of the 55,000 ATMs in Canada are owned by financial institutions. The remaining two thirds are owned by private companies. When white label ATMs in businesses charge convenience fees of about $2, part of the fee goes to the company that owns the ATM, and the other part goes to the business person.

Finance committee  Over the last 10 years, banks have withdrawn from some neighbourhoods and closed down some branches. In 1996, there were over 7,000 bank branches. In 2006, there were fewer than 5,600. So a lot of branches have closed, particularly in poorer neighbourhoods and in rural regions. It is not unusual to find white label ATMs in places where banks used to be located.