Montreal, September 7, 2021 - Option consommateurs is calling on the political parties to propose relief measures to reduce the pressure of inflation on consumer finances, and to commit to better protecting the privacy of Canadians in the current election campaign.
Option consommateurs is concerned about the decline in consumer purchasing power in recent months. This threatens low-income earners in particular, who could find themselves in an even more precarious situation. The future government is expected to introduce a number of relief measures to reduce the pressure of inflation on consumer finances.
Option consommateurs also proposes solutions to give consumers a fairer deal with financial institutions, such as reducing bank fees and credit card interest rates.
"Even though the Bank of Canada's key interest rate remains consistently low, credit card rates are not falling. If this situation were corrected, it would undoubtedly give many consumers some breathing space," says Christian Corbeil, General Manager ofOption consommateurs.
Option consommateurs also hopes that a new bill will be tabled to modernize the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act within the first year of the new government. Citizens' personal information is at the heart of merchants' business models, and current legislation is no longer adequate to the task.
"Among other things, the law should give consumers the right to refuse to be tracked online, via simple and easy-to-access technological mechanisms, prohibit the use of children's data for commercial purposes, and oblige companies to conduct security analyses of their digital services or connected objects before they go to market," adds Alexandre Plourde, lawyer and analyst at Option consommateurs.
The full list of recommendations made by Option consommateurs to the federal political parties is available here.
About Option consommateurs
Option consommateurs is a not-for-profit association whose mission is to defend the rights and interests of consumers. It is closely involved in issues related to personal finance, business practices, financial services, protection of personal information, energy, health and agri-food.
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For more information or an interview :
Marie-Ève Dumont, Communications Consultant
514-777-6133
