The Minister of Finance Joe Oliver, announced the individual proposals by Visa and MasterCard to reduce credit card fees. The Minister said “In total, the two commitments represent a reduction in credit card fees of approximately 10 per cent. These commitments represent a meaningful long-term reduction in costs for merchants that should ultimately result in lower prices for consumers.”
Canadians have told us that they wanted better information on credit card charges, interest on unpaid balances and any other related costs to the credit card they hold. Credit card companies need to charge fees to recover costs, but consumer advocates have voiced concerns that the charges were excessive and not always clearly defined.
As we all know, consumers using credit cards must do so in a responsible manner so that credit card companies do not need to increase their credit card fees in order to cover the bad debts of a few customers.
Our government has also worked with small and medium sized businesses to help export their services and products. This initiative has been a great success. A senior administrator for Economic Development Canada stated that never in the past has small and medium sized businesses been included in Canada’s export initiatives, but this government has included them, and it has had a huge impact on the success of these types of businesses.
Our government has also lowered the small businesses tax rate, eliminated tariffs on hundreds of products, provided Employment Insurance (EI) premium credits to businesses as well as implemented numerous red tape cutting measures.
Small and medium sized businesses are the back bone of our economy. Their success is good for growth, jobs and prosperity for all Canadians.
