PIAC slams BCE-Telus merger proposal

For immediate release
Attention: News/Business editors
PIAC slams BCE-Telus merger proposal
(OTTAWA)—The Public Interest Advocacy Centre slammed the BCE-Telus merger proposal as contrary to the interests of ordinary Canadian consumers.
“The idea that creating a gigantic company with about 70% of all telecom revenues could be good for consumers belongs in a satire not in economic policy,” Michael Janigan, Executive Director of the Public Interest Advocacy Centre stated.
“We have had most meaningful consumer protection, through regulation, done away with by the current government and now we are going to try to finish off competition,” Janigan said.
The Public Interest Advocacy Centre is a non-profit Ottawa based organization that has represented residential consumers in CRTC and government policy decision-making for over thirty years.
Michael Janigan
Executive Director and General Counsel
(613) 562-4002 ext 26
mjanigan@piac.ca

Media Release: Consumer Groups appeal Ontario Energy Board¹s Billion Dollar Giveaway

Attention: News/Business Editors
Consumer Groups appeal Ontario Energy Board¹s Billion Dollar Giveaway
(OTTAWA)—The Vulnerable Energy Consumers Coalition, (VECC) together with
the Consumers Council of Canada (CCC) and the Industrial Gas Users
Association (IGUA) today appealed the decision of the Ontario Energy Board
to allow Union Gas Limited to keep all the revenues from natural gas storage
that is sold to non-Union customers. The storage was built with the rates
paid by Union Gas customers and the outside revenue has always been shared
so that Union Gas customers get 75% of the money credited against their
rates.
Now, Union customers will get nothing and Enbridge Gas Distribution
customers will pay for part of their gas storage obtained from Union Gas
Limited at rates that are six times the actual cost. (All customers of
Union Gas Limited and Enbridge Gas Distribution pay for natural gas storage
in their rates).
Ontario three main customer groups are appealing to the Ontario cabinet to
prevent the decision from being implemented. The cost to Ontario consumers,
after a brief transition period, is expected to be greater than $100 million
per year and one billion dollars over a ten-year period.
“The Board decision will not create any new natural gas storage, and neither
will it conserve or create energy,² said Michael Janigan, General Counsel
of the Public Interest Advocacy Centre who represented VECC in the OEB
proceeding.
“It is simply making Ontario consumers give a billion dollar gift to Union
Gas Limited’s American owners, Duke Energy. This is money obtained by having
Canadian customers pay over the years for storage to be developed and then
taking away the profits when the surplus storage becomes successful.”
Janigan continued.
VECC and the other customer groups are requesting that the Ontario Cabinet
set aside the Board Decision and return it to the OEB for a rehearing.

Letter and Petition of VECC June 19, 2007
Download File: letter_and_petition_of_vecc_june_19_07.pdf [size: 0.07 mb]

 
 
Michael Janigan
Executive Director and General Counsel
Public Interest Advocacy Centre
(613) 562-4002 ext 26

No consumer protection from misleading airline ads in C-11: PIAC

Attention: News/Business editors
June 14, 2007
For Immediate Release
No consumer protection from misleading airline ads in C-11: PIAC
(OTTAWA)—The Public Interest Advocacy Centre (PIAC) slammed the House of
Commons passage of Bill C-11 today which contain Senate amendments that
effectively stripped the original bill, (passed by the House of Commons in
February of this year) of consumer protection provisions with respect to
misleading airline advertising and railway noise. The Liberals joined
Conservative members in approving the altered Bill. The Bloc and the NDP
opposed the Senate amendments.
“This represents an absolute sell out of the interests of travel agents and
airline customers across Canada,² said Michael Janigan, Executive Director
and General Counsel of PIAC.
PIAC, together with other consumer organizations such as Option
Consommateurs and representative organizations in the travel industry such
as the Travel Industry Council of Ontario (TICO) and the Association of
Canadian Travel Agents (ACTA) formed the Travel Protection Initiative (TPI)
over two years ago to work for better protection of passengers in the
airline industry.
In December 2006, in the House of Commons Transportation Committee, on the
motion of the
Liberal members, TPI was successful in obtaining a provision that would
have forced Transport Canada to prevent Airlines from advertising one low
fare then charging a much higher one after all the charges and fees are
added. Laws in Ontario and Quebec prevent travel agents from engaging in
such a practice, while statutes in other provinces have similar language
restricting such practice. The airlines, however are regulated by the
federal government and no such restriction applies.
In the Senate a furious lobby by Air Canada and Westjet to be allowed to
continue with the suspect advertising practices succeeded in winning the
support of the Liberal Senators. An amendment preventing the advertising
provisions from going into effect until; “consultation” takes place was
passed and sent back to the House. In the House, the Liberals led by Joe
Volpe, today deserted their own party’s legislative provisions and passed
the amended Bill.
“The Liberal flip-flop is an insult both to the members like David
McGuinty, who worked hard to put the original advertising protections in
place, and shows who really calls the shots when it comes to the public
interest in Canada” Janigan noted that it was unlikely that Transport
Canada would ever put in place airline advertising restrictions given the
airline opposition.
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Michael Janigan
Executive Director and General Counsel
Public Interest Advocacy Centre
(613) 562-4002 ext 22
mjanigan@piac.ca