"We have seniors across Ontario spending more money on their hydro bill than they're receiving in their old-age security..."

Hydro One CEO must go: Lisa MacLeod

Hydro One executives are running with their tails between their legs, Tory energy critic Lisa MacLeod said Saturday.

"Heads do need to roll, but it needs to start at the top with Hydro One CEO Carmine Marcello," MacLeod said. "It is good to see there is a bit of a shake-up at the moment, but I think it's the CEO has to go."

Two of Hydro One's customer service executives left the company in the wake of provincial ombudsman Andre Marin's investigation into their billing practices, the Toronto Star reported.

Marin announced earlier this month he will conduct "a systemic investigation" of Hydro One's "egregious errors and baffling bills" that focuses on whether the utility company's customer billing practices are transparent and whether its process for responding to customer bill concerns is timely and effective.

"We have seniors across Ontario spending more money on their hydro bill than they're receiving in their old-age security," MacLeod said. "Had the ombudsman not announced he was investigating them, no corrective action would have been taken, and that signals to me they are more worried about what is in the headlines than worried about what's on people's hydro bills."

To read the full story, go to: http://www.sunnewsnetwork.ca/sunnews/politics/archives/2014/02/20140223-082336.html.

Here is the rip off that Flaherty refuses to rein in or even deal with...

Rip Off Alert! How the Credit Card Gravy Train is Running Over You, By Ellen Brown/AlterNet

You pay off your credit card balance every month, thinking you are taking advantage of the “interest-free grace period” and getting free credit. You may even use your credit card when you could have used cash, just to get the free frequent flier or cash-back rewards. But those popular features are misleading. Even when the balance is paid on time every month, credit card use imposes a huge hidden cost on users—hidden because the cost is deducted from what the merchant receives, then passed on to you in the form of higher prices.

Visa and MasterCard charge the merchants about 2% of the value of every credit card transaction, and American Express charges even more. That may not sound like much. But consider that for balances that are paid off monthly (meaning most of them), the banks make 2% or more on a loan averaging only about 25 days (depending on when in the month the charge was made and when in the grace period it was paid). Two percent interest for 25 days works out to a 33.5% return annually (1.02^(365/25) – 1), and that figure may be conservative.

Merchant fees were originally designed as a way to avoid usury and Truth-in-Lending laws. Visa and MasterCard are independent entities, but they were set up by big Wall Street banks, and the card-issuing banks get about 80% of the fees. The annual returns not only fall in the usurious category, but they are returns on other people’s money – usually the borrower’s own money!  Here is how it works . . . .

A must read:

To read the full article, go to the AlterNet source - http://www.alternet.org/economy/rip-alert-how-credit-card-gravy-train-running-over-you

David Parkins (Globe and Mail) has captured the point exactly...

What Flaherty's budget DIDN'T do for me...

There has been much written and hyped about the 2014 budget, so here is one person's assessment of it. In a few words "smoke and mirrors"

Carless students: The hype is that “updated rules announced in yesterday’s budget remove that restriction, meaning you can have your loan even if you carry a bus pass. Finally: vehicular equality.”

Me: I’m not a student, nor (because of a handicap) can I access public transit. Moreover, the last time I renewed my automobile registration it cost be over $800 because of Ontario’s so-called ‘clean air’ cash grab.

Autism assistance: The budget includes $11.4 million to be spent on vocational training for those with autism spectrum disorders.

Me: Doesn’t apply, except as a charge to my income tax.

Cheaper cell bills when we travel: New rules put caps on what carriers can charge for roaming, and force them to be more transparent about what they’re charging, and why.

Me: My cell phone is turned off when I cross the border, and doesn’t go back on until I get home again. However, my regular cell phone charges are higher than most other jurisdictions, but I notice Flaherty didn’t address that issue (except to express his ‘serious concern’).

Price tags closer to what Americans pay: Flaherty is giving the Competition Bureau greater powers to go after American retailers who charge Canadians more than they do Americans for the same goods.

Me: The key phrase here is “is giving” (future tense), and the devil is often in the details. However, the cross border difference that Flaherty didn’t address is the exorbitant bank charges for things like ‘currency conversion’ (on top of the exchange rate) which can amount to $6 per $100, and ATM charges that add another $3.50.

More consumer protection: Many companies now charge consumers more to continue receiving paper-based bills or use in-branch bank tellers or related traditional banking services. Stronger consumer protection rules will ban these practices and ensure less tech-savvy consumers aren’t charged more in the process.

Me: I’m already an e-bill subscriber, but on the other hand my municipal government doesn’t subscribe to e-billing. So what one level of government gives, the other takes away.

Better Internet access in rural areas: The government is pumping more money - $305 million over the next five years – to expand high-speed Internet access to up to 280,000 more homes. If you live far away from the bright lights of the big city, you’ll be just as connected as you are downtown.

Me: This provision doesn’t apply to me except as another charge on my income tax. However, my complaint is the rates imposed by one of the monopolists that control the Canadian internet industry. For example, my connection rates have gone up from $48 per month to $65 in just the past couple of years. In fact, it went from $58 to $65 in the last month. However, Flaherty did nothing to address this practice.

More help for young job-seekers: The feds set an April 1st deadline to implement the $300 million Canada Job Grant Program. Senior workers in high-unemployment regions will also get $25 million to help them land a job. On the flip side, it may be harder to find jobs with Canadian small businesses after a hiring credit was eliminated.

Me: This program doesn’t apply to me except as a charge on my income tax. However, does this grant go directly to employer or to so-called ‘temp agencies’ that siphon off a large percentage of the employee’s salary?

Help for adoption-seeking families: Families trying to adopt a child will get a tax break. The tax credit will go up from $11,774 to $15,000 and will apply to all adoptions that are finalized from January 1st, 2014 forward.

Me: This give-a-way doesn’t apply to me except as a change on my income tax; but did you know there are already a dozen-or-more child benefit grants or tax credits at the federal level alone, that amount to well over $10,000 per child per year per year. There’s money in them thar kids.

Snowmobilers will go further: $10 million with be given to build new snowmobile trails and improve existing ones.

Me: Oh, joy! When people are being laid off, losing their homes, etc., what we really need is more snowmobile trails. 

'Fumbling Flaherty's' budget a cop out...

So much for all the brave talk about reining in cell phone rates, outrageous bank and credit card charges, and ATM fees to get at your own money. Come the morning after, and nothing has changed--not that I every serious thought it would.

The bottom line is there is nothing in this budget that makes my life any easier, and much to my detriment--like getting less in services for more money.

Oh, he was brave enough when it came to adding a tax on cigarettes (what else is new?!), and going after public sector benefits (...Oh, great, let's solve our problems on the backs of workers) but beyond that it's all smoke and mirrors.

He will (someday) bar companies from charging more for goods on the Canadian side of the border, but most companies have brought their prices into line to stay competitive, anyway.

As a snowbird, the cross border shopping prices that affect me are the so-called 'currency conversion' and other bank charges that can amount to a 6% increase on the ticket price whether I pay with a credit card or cash. This, combined with a 10% exchange rate and an ATM fee brings the total surcharge to about 20%.

All of these fall within Flaherty's jurisdiction, but all I got from him was his "serious concern." Yah, right!

And as for cell phone and internet rates. My Bell Canada internet bill mysterious went from $58 to $65 this month, even though I'm not home to use it. Oh, he will make sure the IT companies comply with the Wireless Code of Conduct (whatever that is) such as offering more contract clarity and reducing or eliminating some roaming and cancellation fees. 

That's all very nice, but if I am being gouged now, I'm still going to be gouged when Flaherty gets around to legislating all of this.

This is my response for now, but my final response will come at the polls in 2015.

An open letter to James Flaherty, Minister of Finance for Canada:

[I have long urged everyone to take the time to let your government representative know how you feel, especially if you have a grievance, and even when (rarely I find)  you want to praise them. Here is my example]

Mr. Minister

Although I don't expect this communication to do the least amount of good, apart from generating a letter of 'brush off' intent, as a vacationing, handicapped senior, I am disgusted that the loonie has been allowed to drop to the level it has; i.e. $0.89-cents. This, along with bank charges, which you don't seem to care about either, is enough to make me a prisoner of winter, unable to leave the house with my walker.

For example, 100 USD dolllars taken from an A.T.M. in Florida costs $120.00--$111.00 with currency exchange; an additional $6.00 for 'currency conversion' and bank charges; and $3.00 A.T.M. fee. This utterly outrageous.

And before you lecture me on the benefits to the export industries, i.e. oil industry [$12 billion in profits for Q4, 2013], the gas industry [$4 billion]and General Motors (which is subsidized by the Canadian taxpayers), I will remind you that you are the 'people's representative too, and the trickle-down theory never seems to get down to my level.

As I have said above, I doubt whether this correspondence will do any good whatsoever, but be aware that I am not a happy camper.

Gerry A. Burnie.