Banks and credit unions want more clarity about how extraordinary powers will affect their customers’ accounts the next time the Emergencies Act is invoked, a parliamentary committee heard Thursday.
Representatives of the Canadian Bankers Association and the Canadian Credit Union Association testified before an all-party committee studying the impact of the act’s powers invoked last winter.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau declared a public order emergency on Feb. 14 in an effort to stop protesters from blockading the downtown streets of Ottawa and several international border crossings over their opposition to COVID-19 public health restrictions.
The act granted extraordinary powers to police, governments and banks, including the power to freeze the accounts of people associated with the protests….