Hello,
I am calling on the government to stand up for Canadians by creating national citizen watchdog groups to watch over Canada’s investment industry, big banks, and airline, cable TV, telephone, forestry and mining companies using an innovative, low-cost, effective method that has worked very well in some U.S. states.
According to a national survey of Canadians, 64% of Canadians support the creation of these groups using the pamphlet method. As well, the nation-wide Corporate Responsibility Coalition, and the Canadian Community Reinvestment Coalition, made up of a total of more than 120 citizen groups with a total combined membership of more than 3 million Canadians also support the creation of these watchdog groups using the pamphlet method.
Canadian corporations and mutual fund companies and the investment industry as a whole have shown clearly that they cannot be trusted to treat investors fairly and well, and regulators have not done enough to protect investors from abuse, mainly because of the strength of the industry lobby and the difficult barriers investors face when trying to band together to advocate their interests.
To empower individual investors, the federal government must pass a law creating an Individual Investor Organization (IIO) that requires all publicly traded large federally regulated companies to include a one-page pamphlet in their annual report envelopes, with the pamphlet inviting customers to become members of the IIO. Once the IIO is established, the government must also require all these companies to include a notice about the IIO, and link to its website, at the top of every email it sends to customers.
Banks, cable-TV and telephone companies enjoy many privileges and subsidies as a result of government regulations which allow them to operate as oligopolies with huge profits. In contrast, consumers in Canada are largely unorganized and unable to hold large companies accountable to community interests. All of these companies use part of the fees they charge customers to pay for their lawyers, lawsuits, lobbyists, advertising, public relations and political donations – in other words, customers pay for all of the advocacy efforts of the companies.
To balance the marketplace, the federal government must require federal banks, trusts and insurance companies to include a one-page pamphlet in their credit card bills and statement envelopes a couple of times a year. The pamphlet would invite customers to become members of a new Financial Consumer Organization (FCO).
The government must also require by law that cable-TV and telephone companies to include a one-page pamphlet in their billing envelopes. The pamphlet would invite customers to become members of their own Telecommunications Consumer Organization (TCO).
The government must also require by law that Canada’s big airlines to include a one-page pamphlet in their billing envelopes. The pamphlet would invite customers to become members of their own Air Passenger Organization (APO).
Once the FCO, TCO and APO are established, the federal government must also require by law that all these companies include a notice about the watchdog groups, and link to the watchdog groups’ websites, at the top of every email it sends to customers.
This same method can and should be used to form watchdog groups for forestry and mining companies, and for energy and water utility companies.
The proposed IIO, FCO, TCO and APO are based upon Citizen Utility Boards (CUBs) which already exist in four states in the U.S. In these states, utilities have been required to enclose a pamphlet in their billing envelopes inviting people to join the CUB. About four percent of consumers usually join the CUB at a $10-15 annual membership fee. CUBs are independent, broad-based watchdog groups that are run democratically by their members and represent consumer interests in the marketplace. For example, in Illinois the CUB has 170,000 members, a $1.7 million annual budget, and has saved consumers more than $9 billion since 1983 by opposing rate hikes by utilities.
Enclosing the pamphlet will not cost any company, nor the government, any money. The groups will pay for the costs of printing the pamphlets, and because the pamphlets will only be one page they can be enclosed without any extra postage cost.
If federal politicians do not create these citizen watchdog groups using the low-cost, effective pamphlet method, they will continue protecting multi-millionaire executives of big businesses in various industries from actual accountability, and continuing to ignore a simple, easy way to empower consumers across Canada. To see more details about how these groups can be created, please go to: <Democracy Watch’s Citizen Association Campaign webpage>
Please let me know what you will do to ensure that these watchdog groups are created as soon as possible. I will be deciding which political party to vote for in the next election based on the responses I receive from representatives in each party. I look forward to hearing from you.
Hello,
I am calling on the government to stand up for Canadians by creating national citizen watchdog groups to watch over Canada’s investment industry, big banks, and airline, cable TV, telephone, forestry and mining companies using an innovative, low-cost, effective method that has worked very well in some U.S. states.
According to a national survey of Canadians, 64% of Canadians support the creation of these groups using the pamphlet method. As well, the nation-wide Corporate Responsibility Coalition, and the Canadian Community Reinvestment Coalition, made up of a total of more than 120 citizen groups with a total combined membership of more than 3 million Canadians also support the creation of these watchdog groups using the pamphlet method.
Canadian corporations and mutual fund companies and the investment industry as a whole have shown clearly that they cannot be trusted to treat investors fairly and well, and regulators have not done enough to protect investors from abuse, mainly because of the strength of the industry lobby and the difficult barriers investors face when trying to band together to advocate their interests.
To empower individual investors, the federal government must pass a law creating an Individual Investor Organization (IIO) that requires all publicly traded large federally regulated companies to include a one-page pamphlet in their annual report envelopes, with the pamphlet inviting customers to become members of the IIO. Once the IIO is established, the government must also require all these companies to include a notice about the IIO, and link to its website, at the top of every email it sends to customers.
Banks, cable-TV and telephone companies enjoy many privileges and subsidies as a result of government regulations which allow them to operate as oligopolies with huge profits. In contrast, consumers in Canada are largely unorganized and unable to hold large companies accountable to community interests. All of these companies use part of the fees they charge customers to pay for their lawyers, lawsuits, lobbyists, advertising, public relations and political donations – in other words, customers pay for all of the advocacy efforts of the companies.
To balance the marketplace, the federal government must require federal banks, trusts and insurance companies to include a one-page pamphlet in their credit card bills and statement envelopes a couple of times a year. The pamphlet would invite customers to become members of a new Financial Consumer Organization (FCO).
The government must also require by law that cable-TV and telephone companies to include a one-page pamphlet in their billing envelopes. The pamphlet would invite customers to become members of their own Telecommunications Consumer Organization (TCO).
The government must also require by law that Canada’s big airlines to include a one-page pamphlet in their billing envelopes. The pamphlet would invite customers to become members of their own Air Passenger Organization (APO).
Once the FCO, TCO and APO are established, the federal government must also require by law that all these companies include a notice about the watchdog groups, and link to the watchdog groups’ websites, at the top of every email it sends to customers.
This same method can and should be used to form watchdog groups for forestry and mining companies, and for energy and water utility companies.
The proposed IIO, FCO, TCO and APO are based upon Citizen Utility Boards (CUBs) which already exist in four states in the U.S. In these states, utilities have been required to enclose a pamphlet in their billing envelopes inviting people to join the CUB. About four percent of consumers usually join the CUB at a $10-15 annual membership fee. CUBs are independent, broad-based watchdog groups that are run democratically by their members and represent consumer interests in the marketplace. For example, in Illinois the CUB has 170,000 members, a $1.7 million annual budget, and has saved consumers more than $9 billion since 1983 by opposing rate hikes by utilities.
Enclosing the pamphlet will not cost any company, nor the government, any money. The groups will pay for the costs of printing the pamphlets, and because the pamphlets will only be one page they can be enclosed without any extra postage cost.
If federal politicians do not create these citizen watchdog groups using the low-cost, effective pamphlet method, they will continue protecting multi-millionaire executives of big businesses in various industries from actual accountability, and continuing to ignore a simple, easy way to empower consumers across Canada. To see more details about how these groups can be created, please go to: <Democracy Watch’s Citizen Association Campaign webpage>
Please let me know what you will do to ensure that these watchdog groups are created as soon as possible. I will be deciding which political party to vote for in the next election based on the responses I receive from representatives in each party. I look forward to hearing from you.
Hello,
I am calling on the government to stand up for Canadians by creating national citizen watchdog groups to watch over Canada’s investment industry, big banks, and airline, cable TV, telephone, forestry and mining companies using an innovative, low-cost, effective method that has worked very well in some U.S. states.
According to a national survey of Canadians, 64% of Canadians support the creation of these groups using the pamphlet method. As well, the nation-wide Corporate Responsibility Coalition, and the Canadian Community Reinvestment Coalition, made up of a total of more than 120 citizen groups with a total combined membership of more than 3 million Canadians also support the creation of these watchdog groups using the pamphlet method.
Canadian corporations and mutual fund companies and the investment industry as a whole have shown clearly that they cannot be trusted to treat investors fairly and well, and regulators have not done enough to protect investors from abuse, mainly because of the strength of the industry lobby and the difficult barriers investors face when trying to band together to advocate their interests.
To empower individual investors, the federal government must pass a law creating an Individual Investor Organization (IIO) that requires all publicly traded large federally regulated companies to include a one-page pamphlet in their annual report envelopes, with the pamphlet inviting customers to become members of the IIO. Once the IIO is established, the government must also require all these companies to include a notice about the IIO, and link to its website, at the top of every email it sends to customers.
Banks, cable-TV and telephone companies enjoy many privileges and subsidies as a result of government regulations which allow them to operate as oligopolies with huge profits. In contrast, consumers in Canada are largely unorganized and unable to hold large companies accountable to community interests. All of these companies use part of the fees they charge customers to pay for their lawyers, lawsuits, lobbyists, advertising, public relations and political donations – in other words, customers pay for all of the advocacy efforts of the companies.
To balance the marketplace, the federal government must require federal banks, trusts and insurance companies to include a one-page pamphlet in their credit card bills and statement envelopes a couple of times a year. The pamphlet would invite customers to become members of a new Financial Consumer Organization (FCO).
The government must also require by law that cable-TV and telephone companies to include a one-page pamphlet in their billing envelopes. The pamphlet would invite customers to become members of their own Telecommunications Consumer Organization (TCO).
The government must also require by law that Canada’s big airlines to include a one-page pamphlet in their billing envelopes. The pamphlet would invite customers to become members of their own Air Passenger Organization (APO).
Once the FCO, TCO and APO are established, the federal government must also require by law that all these companies include a notice about the watchdog groups, and link to the watchdog groups’ websites, at the top of every email it sends to customers.
This same method can and should be used to form watchdog groups for forestry and mining companies, and for energy and water utility companies.
The proposed IIO, FCO, TCO and APO are based upon Citizen Utility Boards (CUBs) which already exist in four states in the U.S. In these states, utilities have been required to enclose a pamphlet in their billing envelopes inviting people to join the CUB. About four percent of consumers usually join the CUB at a $10-15 annual membership fee. CUBs are independent, broad-based watchdog groups that are run democratically by their members and represent consumer interests in the marketplace. For example, in Illinois the CUB has 170,000 members, a $1.7 million annual budget, and has saved consumers more than $9 billion since 1983 by opposing rate hikes by utilities.
Enclosing the pamphlet will not cost any company, nor the government, any money. The groups will pay for the costs of printing the pamphlets, and because the pamphlets will only be one page they can be enclosed without any extra postage cost.
If federal politicians do not create these citizen watchdog groups using the low-cost, effective pamphlet method, they will continue protecting multi-millionaire executives of big businesses in various industries from actual accountability, and continuing to ignore a simple, easy way to empower consumers across Canada. To see more details about how these groups can be created, please go to: <Democracy Watch’s Citizen Association Campaign webpage>
Please let me know what you will do to ensure that these watchdog groups are created as soon as possible. I will be deciding which political party to vote for in the next election based on the responses I receive from representatives in each party. I look forward to hearing from you.
Hello,
I am calling on the government to stand up for Canadians by creating national citizen watchdog groups to watch over Canada’s investment industry, big banks, and airline, cable TV, telephone, forestry and mining companies using an innovative, low-cost, effective method that has worked very well in some U.S. states.
According to a national survey of Canadians, 64% of Canadians support the creation of these groups using the pamphlet method. As well, the nation-wide Corporate Responsibility Coalition, and the Canadian Community Reinvestment Coalition, made up of a total of more than 120 citizen groups with a total combined membership of more than 3 million Canadians also support the creation of these watchdog groups using the pamphlet method.
Canadian corporations and mutual fund companies and the investment industry as a whole have shown clearly that they cannot be trusted to treat investors fairly and well, and regulators have not done enough to protect investors from abuse, mainly because of the strength of the industry lobby and the difficult barriers investors face when trying to band together to advocate their interests.
To empower individual investors, the federal government must pass a law creating an Individual Investor Organization (IIO) that requires all publicly traded large federally regulated companies to include a one-page pamphlet in their annual report envelopes, with the pamphlet inviting customers to become members of the IIO. Once the IIO is established, the government must also require all these companies to include a notice about the IIO, and link to its website, at the top of every email it sends to customers.
Banks, cable-TV and telephone companies enjoy many privileges and subsidies as a result of government regulations which allow them to operate as oligopolies with huge profits. In contrast, consumers in Canada are largely unorganized and unable to hold large companies accountable to community interests. All of these companies use part of the fees they charge customers to pay for their lawyers, lawsuits, lobbyists, advertising, public relations and political donations – in other words, customers pay for all of the advocacy efforts of the companies.
To balance the marketplace, the federal government must require federal banks, trusts and insurance companies to include a one-page pamphlet in their credit card bills and statement envelopes a couple of times a year. The pamphlet would invite customers to become members of a new Financial Consumer Organization (FCO).
The government must also require by law that cable-TV and telephone companies to include a one-page pamphlet in their billing envelopes. The pamphlet would invite customers to become members of their own Telecommunications Consumer Organization (TCO).
The government must also require by law that Canada’s big airlines to include a one-page pamphlet in their billing envelopes. The pamphlet would invite customers to become members of their own Air Passenger Organization (APO).
Once the FCO, TCO and APO are established, the federal government must also require by law that all these companies include a notice about the watchdog groups, and link to the watchdog groups’ websites, at the top of every email it sends to customers.
This same method can and should be used to form watchdog groups for forestry and mining companies, and for energy and water utility companies.
The proposed IIO, FCO, TCO and APO are based upon Citizen Utility Boards (CUBs) which already exist in four states in the U.S. In these states, utilities have been required to enclose a pamphlet in their billing envelopes inviting people to join the CUB. About four percent of consumers usually join the CUB at a $10-15 annual membership fee. CUBs are independent, broad-based watchdog groups that are run democratically by their members and represent consumer interests in the marketplace. For example, in Illinois the CUB has 170,000 members, a $1.7 million annual budget, and has saved consumers more than $9 billion since 1983 by opposing rate hikes by utilities.
Enclosing the pamphlet will not cost any company, nor the government, any money. The groups will pay for the costs of printing the pamphlets, and because the pamphlets will only be one page they can be enclosed without any extra postage cost.
If federal politicians do not create these citizen watchdog groups using the low-cost, effective pamphlet method, they will continue protecting multi-millionaire executives of big businesses in various industries from actual accountability, and continuing to ignore a simple, easy way to empower consumers across Canada. To see more details about how these groups can be created, please go to: <Democracy Watch’s Citizen Association Campaign webpage>
Please let me know what you will do to ensure that these watchdog groups are created as soon as possible. I will be deciding which political party to vote for in the next election based on the responses I receive from representatives in each party. I look forward to hearing from you.
Hello,
I am calling on the government to stand up for Canadians by creating national citizen watchdog groups to watch over Canada’s investment industry, big banks, and airline, cable TV, telephone, forestry and mining companies using an innovative, low-cost, effective method that has worked very well in some U.S. states.
According to a national survey of Canadians, 64% of Canadians support the creation of these groups using the pamphlet method. As well, the nation-wide Corporate Responsibility Coalition, and the Canadian Community Reinvestment Coalition, made up of a total of more than 120 citizen groups with a total combined membership of more than 3 million Canadians also support the creation of these watchdog groups using the pamphlet method.
Canadian corporations and mutual fund companies and the investment industry as a whole have shown clearly that they cannot be trusted to treat investors fairly and well, and regulators have not done enough to protect investors from abuse, mainly because of the strength of the industry lobby and the difficult barriers investors face when trying to band together to advocate their interests.
To empower individual investors, the federal government must pass a law creating an Individual Investor Organization (IIO) that requires all publicly traded large federally regulated companies to include a one-page pamphlet in their annual report envelopes, with the pamphlet inviting customers to become members of the IIO. Once the IIO is established, the government must also require all these companies to include a notice about the IIO, and link to its website, at the top of every email it sends to customers.
Banks, cable-TV and telephone companies enjoy many privileges and subsidies as a result of government regulations which allow them to operate as oligopolies with huge profits. In contrast, consumers in Canada are largely unorganized and unable to hold large companies accountable to community interests. All of these companies use part of the fees they charge customers to pay for their lawyers, lawsuits, lobbyists, advertising, public relations and political donations – in other words, customers pay for all of the advocacy efforts of the companies.
To balance the marketplace, the federal government must require federal banks, trusts and insurance companies to include a one-page pamphlet in their credit card bills and statement envelopes a couple of times a year. The pamphlet would invite customers to become members of a new Financial Consumer Organization (FCO).
The government must also require by law that cable-TV and telephone companies to include a one-page pamphlet in their billing envelopes. The pamphlet would invite customers to become members of their own Telecommunications Consumer Organization (TCO).
The government must also require by law that Canada’s big airlines to include a one-page pamphlet in their billing envelopes. The pamphlet would invite customers to become members of their own Air Passenger Organization (APO).
Once the FCO, TCO and APO are established, the federal government must also require by law that all these companies include a notice about the watchdog groups, and link to the watchdog groups’ websites, at the top of every email it sends to customers.
This same method can and should be used to form watchdog groups for forestry and mining companies, and for energy and water utility companies.
The proposed IIO, FCO, TCO and APO are based upon Citizen Utility Boards (CUBs) which already exist in four states in the U.S. In these states, utilities have been required to enclose a pamphlet in their billing envelopes inviting people to join the CUB. About four percent of consumers usually join the CUB at a $10-15 annual membership fee. CUBs are independent, broad-based watchdog groups that are run democratically by their members and represent consumer interests in the marketplace. For example, in Illinois the CUB has 170,000 members, a $1.7 million annual budget, and has saved consumers more than $9 billion since 1983 by opposing rate hikes by utilities.
Enclosing the pamphlet will not cost any company, nor the government, any money. The groups will pay for the costs of printing the pamphlets, and because the pamphlets will only be one page they can be enclosed without any extra postage cost.
If federal politicians do not create these citizen watchdog groups using the low-cost, effective pamphlet method, they will continue protecting multi-millionaire executives of big businesses in various industries from actual accountability, and continuing to ignore a simple, easy way to empower consumers across Canada. To see more details about how these groups can be created, please go to: <Democracy Watch’s Citizen Association Campaign webpage>
Please let me know what you will do to ensure that these watchdog groups are created as soon as possible. I will be deciding which political party to vote for in the next election based on the responses I receive from representatives in each party. I look forward to hearing from you.
Hello,
I am calling on the government to stand up for Canadians by creating national citizen watchdog groups to watch over Canada’s investment industry, big banks, and airline, cable TV, telephone, forestry and mining companies using an innovative, low-cost, effective method that has worked very well in some U.S. states.
According to a national survey of Canadians, 64% of Canadians support the creation of these groups using the pamphlet method. As well, the nation-wide Corporate Responsibility Coalition, and the Canadian Community Reinvestment Coalition, made up of a total of more than 120 citizen groups with a total combined membership of more than 3 million Canadians also support the creation of these watchdog groups using the pamphlet method.
Canadian corporations and mutual fund companies and the investment industry as a whole have shown clearly that they cannot be trusted to treat investors fairly and well, and regulators have not done enough to protect investors from abuse, mainly because of the strength of the industry lobby and the difficult barriers investors face when trying to band together to advocate their interests.
To empower individual investors, the federal government must pass a law creating an Individual Investor Organization (IIO) that requires all publicly traded large federally regulated companies to include a one-page pamphlet in their annual report envelopes, with the pamphlet inviting customers to become members of the IIO. Once the IIO is established, the government must also require all these companies to include a notice about the IIO, and link to its website, at the top of every email it sends to customers.
Banks, cable-TV and telephone companies enjoy many privileges and subsidies as a result of government regulations which allow them to operate as oligopolies with huge profits. In contrast, consumers in Canada are largely unorganized and unable to hold large companies accountable to community interests. All of these companies use part of the fees they charge customers to pay for their lawyers, lawsuits, lobbyists, advertising, public relations and political donations – in other words, customers pay for all of the advocacy efforts of the companies.
To balance the marketplace, the federal government must require federal banks, trusts and insurance companies to include a one-page pamphlet in their credit card bills and statement envelopes a couple of times a year. The pamphlet would invite customers to become members of a new Financial Consumer Organization (FCO).
The government must also require by law that cable-TV and telephone companies to include a one-page pamphlet in their billing envelopes. The pamphlet would invite customers to become members of their own Telecommunications Consumer Organization (TCO).
The government must also require by law that Canada’s big airlines to include a one-page pamphlet in their billing envelopes. The pamphlet would invite customers to become members of their own Air Passenger Organization (APO).
Once the FCO, TCO and APO are established, the federal government must also require by law that all these companies include a notice about the watchdog groups, and link to the watchdog groups’ websites, at the top of every email it sends to customers.
This same method can and should be used to form watchdog groups for forestry and mining companies, and for energy and water utility companies.
The proposed IIO, FCO, TCO and APO are based upon Citizen Utility Boards (CUBs) which already exist in four states in the U.S. In these states, utilities have been required to enclose a pamphlet in their billing envelopes inviting people to join the CUB. About four percent of consumers usually join the CUB at a $10-15 annual membership fee. CUBs are independent, broad-based watchdog groups that are run democratically by their members and represent consumer interests in the marketplace. For example, in Illinois the CUB has 170,000 members, a $1.7 million annual budget, and has saved consumers more than $9 billion since 1983 by opposing rate hikes by utilities.
Enclosing the pamphlet will not cost any company, nor the government, any money. The groups will pay for the costs of printing the pamphlets, and because the pamphlets will only be one page they can be enclosed without any extra postage cost.
If federal politicians do not create these citizen watchdog groups using the low-cost, effective pamphlet method, they will continue protecting multi-millionaire executives of big businesses in various industries from actual accountability, and continuing to ignore a simple, easy way to empower consumers across Canada. To see more details about how these groups can be created, please go to: <Democracy Watch’s Citizen Association Campaign webpage>
Please let me know what you will do to ensure that these watchdog groups are created as soon as possible. I will be deciding which political party to vote for in the next election based on the responses I receive from representatives in each party. I look forward to hearing from you.
Hello,
I am calling on the government to stand up for Canadians by creating national citizen watchdog groups to watch over Canada’s investment industry, big banks, and airline, cable TV, telephone, forestry and mining companies using an innovative, low-cost, effective method that has worked very well in some U.S. states.
According to a national survey of Canadians, 64% of Canadians support the creation of these groups using the pamphlet method. As well, the nation-wide Corporate Responsibility Coalition, and the Canadian Community Reinvestment Coalition, made up of a total of more than 120 citizen groups with a total combined membership of more than 3 million Canadians also support the creation of these watchdog groups using the pamphlet method.
Canadian corporations and mutual fund companies and the investment industry as a whole have shown clearly that they cannot be trusted to treat investors fairly and well, and regulators have not done enough to protect investors from abuse, mainly because of the strength of the industry lobby and the difficult barriers investors face when trying to band together to advocate their interests.
To empower individual investors, the federal government must pass a law creating an Individual Investor Organization (IIO) that requires all publicly traded large federally regulated companies to include a one-page pamphlet in their annual report envelopes, with the pamphlet inviting customers to become members of the IIO. Once the IIO is established, the government must also require all these companies to include a notice about the IIO, and link to its website, at the top of every email it sends to customers.
Banks, cable-TV and telephone companies enjoy many privileges and subsidies as a result of government regulations which allow them to operate as oligopolies with huge profits. In contrast, consumers in Canada are largely unorganized and unable to hold large companies accountable to community interests. All of these companies use part of the fees they charge customers to pay for their lawyers, lawsuits, lobbyists, advertising, public relations and political donations – in other words, customers pay for all of the advocacy efforts of the companies.
To balance the marketplace, the federal government must require federal banks, trusts and insurance companies to include a one-page pamphlet in their credit card bills and statement envelopes a couple of times a year. The pamphlet would invite customers to become members of a new Financial Consumer Organization (FCO).
The government must also require by law that cable-TV and telephone companies to include a one-page pamphlet in their billing envelopes. The pamphlet would invite customers to become members of their own Telecommunications Consumer Organization (TCO).
The government must also require by law that Canada’s big airlines to include a one-page pamphlet in their billing envelopes. The pamphlet would invite customers to become members of their own Air Passenger Organization (APO).
Once the FCO, TCO and APO are established, the federal government must also require by law that all these companies include a notice about the watchdog groups, and link to the watchdog groups’ websites, at the top of every email it sends to customers.
This same method can and should be used to form watchdog groups for forestry and mining companies, and for energy and water utility companies.
The proposed IIO, FCO, TCO and APO are based upon Citizen Utility Boards (CUBs) which already exist in four states in the U.S. In these states, utilities have been required to enclose a pamphlet in their billing envelopes inviting people to join the CUB. About four percent of consumers usually join the CUB at a $10-15 annual membership fee. CUBs are independent, broad-based watchdog groups that are run democratically by their members and represent consumer interests in the marketplace. For example, in Illinois the CUB has 170,000 members, a $1.7 million annual budget, and has saved consumers more than $9 billion since 1983 by opposing rate hikes by utilities.
Enclosing the pamphlet will not cost any company, nor the government, any money. The groups will pay for the costs of printing the pamphlets, and because the pamphlets will only be one page they can be enclosed without any extra postage cost.
If federal politicians do not create these citizen watchdog groups using the low-cost, effective pamphlet method, they will continue protecting multi-millionaire executives of big businesses in various industries from actual accountability, and continuing to ignore a simple, easy way to empower consumers across Canada. To see more details about how these groups can be created, please go to: <Democracy Watch’s Citizen Association Campaign webpage>
Please let me know what you will do to ensure that these watchdog groups are created as soon as possible. I will be deciding which political party to vote for in the next election based on the responses I receive from representatives in each party. I look forward to hearing from you.
Hello,
I am calling on the government to stand up for Canadians by creating national citizen watchdog groups to watch over Canada’s investment industry, big banks, and airline, cable TV, telephone, forestry and mining companies using an innovative, low-cost, effective method that has worked very well in some U.S. states.
According to a national survey of Canadians, 64% of Canadians support the creation of these groups using the pamphlet method. As well, the nation-wide Corporate Responsibility Coalition, and the Canadian Community Reinvestment Coalition, made up of a total of more than 120 citizen groups with a total combined membership of more than 3 million Canadians also support the creation of these watchdog groups using the pamphlet method.
Canadian corporations and mutual fund companies and the investment industry as a whole have shown clearly that they cannot be trusted to treat investors fairly and well, and regulators have not done enough to protect investors from abuse, mainly because of the strength of the industry lobby and the difficult barriers investors face when trying to band together to advocate their interests.
To empower individual investors, the federal government must pass a law creating an Individual Investor Organization (IIO) that requires all publicly traded large federally regulated companies to include a one-page pamphlet in their annual report envelopes, with the pamphlet inviting customers to become members of the IIO. Once the IIO is established, the government must also require all these companies to include a notice about the IIO, and link to its website, at the top of every email it sends to customers.
Banks, cable-TV and telephone companies enjoy many privileges and subsidies as a result of government regulations which allow them to operate as oligopolies with huge profits. In contrast, consumers in Canada are largely unorganized and unable to hold large companies accountable to community interests. All of these companies use part of the fees they charge customers to pay for their lawyers, lawsuits, lobbyists, advertising, public relations and political donations – in other words, customers pay for all of the advocacy efforts of the companies.
To balance the marketplace, the federal government must require federal banks, trusts and insurance companies to include a one-page pamphlet in their credit card bills and statement envelopes a couple of times a year. The pamphlet would invite customers to become members of a new Financial Consumer Organization (FCO).
The government must also require by law that cable-TV and telephone companies to include a one-page pamphlet in their billing envelopes. The pamphlet would invite customers to become members of their own Telecommunications Consumer Organization (TCO).
The government must also require by law that Canada’s big airlines to include a one-page pamphlet in their billing envelopes. The pamphlet would invite customers to become members of their own Air Passenger Organization (APO).
Once the FCO, TCO and APO are established, the federal government must also require by law that all these companies include a notice about the watchdog groups, and link to the watchdog groups’ websites, at the top of every email it sends to customers.
This same method can and should be used to form watchdog groups for forestry and mining companies, and for energy and water utility companies.
The proposed IIO, FCO, TCO and APO are based upon Citizen Utility Boards (CUBs) which already exist in four states in the U.S. In these states, utilities have been required to enclose a pamphlet in their billing envelopes inviting people to join the CUB. About four percent of consumers usually join the CUB at a $10-15 annual membership fee. CUBs are independent, broad-based watchdog groups that are run democratically by their members and represent consumer interests in the marketplace. For example, in Illinois the CUB has 170,000 members, a $1.7 million annual budget, and has saved consumers more than $9 billion since 1983 by opposing rate hikes by utilities.
Enclosing the pamphlet will not cost any company, nor the government, any money. The groups will pay for the costs of printing the pamphlets, and because the pamphlets will only be one page they can be enclosed without any extra postage cost.
If federal politicians do not create these citizen watchdog groups using the low-cost, effective pamphlet method, they will continue protecting multi-millionaire executives of big businesses in various industries from actual accountability, and continuing to ignore a simple, easy way to empower consumers across Canada. To see more details about how these groups can be created, please go to: <Democracy Watch’s Citizen Association Campaign webpage>
Please let me know what you will do to ensure that these watchdog groups are created as soon as possible. I will be deciding which political party to vote for in the next election based on the responses I receive from representatives in each party. I look forward to hearing from you.
