(Fredericton) Erin O’Dowley says he wants to tackle rising consumer prices and try to control inflation by stimulating competition.
The leader of the Conservative Party of Canada is proposing to issue a greater letter to the legal provisions relating to pricing in order to reduce the grocery bill.
A conservative government would increase the maximum fine for pricing from $ 24 million to $ 100 million. It should also impose criminal penalties, including imprisonment, on senior executives charged with price manipulation.
The party advises to establish strict code of conduct to protect suppliers and promote competition between grocery stores.
Conservatives believe that a competitive market is a healthy market. Competitiveness lowers prices and gives consumers a choice of what they can afford, ”O’Toole told a news conference Saturday morning.
While in Fredicton, New Brunswick, the conservative leader said the basket of groceries had increased by 5%. “We need to control inflation, we need to reduce prices. We need more competition, not less,” he said.
The Conservatives’ plan is to stand up against Canadian companies, “by significantly reducing competition and rejecting connections that lead to layoffs and higher prices.” Competitive law prevents large companies from dominating entire sectors and they also want to prevent costs from rising.
The party also proposes to create a technical working group within the competitive bureau. This will determine whether the dominance and anti-competitive behavior of technology companies affects Canadian industry.
Mr. O’Toole said he was in favor of opening the door to more competition in the telecommunications industry – currently dominated by a few big players. But on the condition that Canadian suppliers may also take advantage of overseas markets.
“If we open our market to other competitors like American companies, we expect Canadian companies to have a free hand to compete as well. So we are going to work with countries like the United States to ensure that if they give us our access, they will also have access to our market,” he explained.
The Erin O Tool-led government will target financial institutions to reduce prices. Banks will demand greater transparency regarding investment management fees by disclosing the net returns of investments for fees. He will order the competition fee to inquire into bank fees.
