Media Advisory: Ontario ACORN Works to Stop Predatory Gouging by Western Union, MoneyGram etc.

TORONTO, ONTARIO--(Marketwire - May 30, 2012) - Ontario NDP MPP Jagmeet Singh, with the support of Ontario ACORN, will introduce a Private Member Bill to regulate Foreign Money Transfer fees. The Province of Ontario has jurisdiction over money transfer organizations like Western Union and MoneyGram.

ACORN members are happy to announce that the bill includes a 5% cap on fees and will include disclosure and enforcement. Even the World Bank and the G8 are prompting a plan called "5x5"; their goal is to reduce the price of transferring money via remittances down to 5% and to do so in 5 years (by the target date of 2014).

"For too long, immigrants and migrant workers have experienced financial injustice because of the fees charged by Money Transfer Organizations. We are very encouraged to see a ray of hope in the legislation to be introduced by Jagmeet Singh that could lower the fees in Ontario for sending money overseas," says Kay Bisnath, President of ACORN Canada.

Further, The World Bank estimates that more than $400 (USD) billion is remitted annually with 75% flowing from the developed world to the developing world, with about $44.4 billion in fees. A recent investigation by ACORN Canada and ACORN International exposed the fact that fees charged are often 20% (see full report, Past Time for Remittance Justice, 2010 at http://bit.ly/RemitReport).

ACORN Canada also estimates with fees being on average 15%, this equals $2,523,000,000 leaving Canada every year; with approximately $378,450,000 going to money transfer organizations as fees and $252,300,000 representing this 10% gouge being kept unfairly by corporate élites (see StatsCan Report, Remittance Behaviour Among Recent Immigrants in Canada. http://www.statcan.gc.ca/pub/11f0019m/2008312/s2-eng.htm).

ACORN Canada - www.acorncanada.org the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now, Canada - is among the nation's largest community organization of low- and moderate-income families, working together for social and economic justice and stronger communities. ACORN Canada is an independent national organization with nearly 45,000 members across six cities organizing a movement of low- and moderate-income families for social and economic change.