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3 9 |Thursday, April 6, 2017 | OAKVILLE BEAVER | www.insideHALTON.com O ntario provincial g overnm en t m oving to p ro tect investors ast week the Ontario government an nounced it is going to do more to protect investors from the financial services industry. Great announcement, however, we have had similar announcements in the past that have done little to help the individual investor. Finance Minister Charles Sousa said new leg islation will be introduced to provide industry regulators the ability to better enforce disciplin ary actions and fines through the courts. "This measure will improve the self-regulatory organizations' ability to collect fines levied against individuals and help deter potential offenders from wrong-doing in the first place," Sousa was reported saying. This was welcome news by the Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada (IIROC). "Regulation doesn't work unless it has teeth," said Andrew Kriegler, president and CEO of IIROC. Sounds great, or does it? According to Kriegler, the backlog of unpaid fines in Ontario since 2008, for offences rang ing from misappropriating clients' funds, falsely endorsing clients' signatures and making unsuit able recommendations, is a staggering $20 mil lion. Please allow me to play the role of devils ad vocate. If our provincial government has IIROC, an existing regulatory body, that has such a large amount in uncollected fines, should the collec- L Dollais & Sense Peter Watson Guest Contributor Financial Planning Policy Alternatives includes a statutory duty for advisors to act in the best in terest of their clients. Even though Sousa didn't commit to it, in my opinion a statutory best interest duty would be the most significant advancement in protecting individual investors the industry has seen in de cades. In order to be effective, it should allow indi vidual investors the right to sue wrongful advi sors and the firms that employ and supervise them. Whether it be specific legal action on behalf of one client or a class-action suit, that kind of policing option would have teeth. In simple words, if harm was done to an in vestor, those committing the harm would be subject to legal action. The bottom line is that some individual cli ents need protection from misconduct, and if that protection is not adequately provided by the existing framework, there is more work to be done. -- Submitted by Peter Watson o f Peter Watson Investments and Aligned Capital Partners Inc., MBA, CFP, R.FP, CIM, FCSI., Certified Financial Planner tion process be assigned to another body? In the business world, it is success that is re warded and reinforced, not failure -- $20 million in uncollected fines seems like a failure. Several groups applauded the government' s announcement and proclaimed how their orga nizations could play a pivotal role. In my opinion, some of those same organiza tions appear to have failed in the past. Despite that, they want to continue playing a role in po licing the financial services industry. Some would argue the bodies that purport to be protecting individual investors are more of a union, protecting those employed in the finan cial services industry. However, all is not lost by last week's an nouncement. The Ontario government' s recent Expert Committee to Consider Financial Advisory and ` SAVE N O W 10% *Cut out this ad and save 10% on your food bill VALID AT 1011 Uppermiddle Rd East & 217 Cross Ave Oakville(DINE IN ONLY) T h is coupon is only valid at 1011 Uppermiddle R d E & 2 1 7 Cross Ave in O akville ON . T h is coupon entitles you to 10% o ff your food b ill b efore tax. O nly one coupon per table. Taxes extra. N o cash value. E xpires on .April 30, 2017. D IN E IN ONLY Voted Best Accountant by Oakville Beaver Readers for 10 Consecutive Years · A c c o u n tin g · A u d itin g · T axation Ricky Wong CPA, CA, MBA, B. E n g F o r m o r e i n f o r m a t i o n p le a s e c h e c k o u r w e b s i t e OPEN 7 DAYS A WEEK 7 A M - 3 PM www.rickywong.ca 1 2 0 0 S p e e rs R d ., U n i t 3 2 , O a k v ille , O n t . L 6 L 2 X 4 O f f d u n d a s s t . (# 5 H w y ) b e t w e e n m e a d o w r i d g e d r . & e i g h t h L in e - s h o p p e s o n d u n d a s p la z a 2501 Prince Michael Drive, Oakville L6H 0E9 (905) 845 - 1 4 0 8 |Fax (905) 845 - 5 9 3 1 1ricky@rickywong.ca 905.257.5126 ·www.sunnysidegriM.com ____________________ THIRTY 750s YOUR WINE M A K I N G ES T A B L IS H M E N T E x p e rie n c e p re m iu m w in e m a k in g a t th e b e s t p ric e s . S E E W H A T M AK ES U S DIFFERENT Clean out your garage and sell stuff on Tradyo. Make Your Own Wine from $ California 69' a batch! Hours: Tuesday-W ednesday: 10:30am-6pm Thursday-Friday: 10:30am-8pm Saturday: 9am-5pm Sunday-M onday Closed C o n n o is s e u r tradyo V is it w w w .tra d y o .c o m Call for appointment. Every batch makes 30 bottles. *First time clients only, w ith coupon. 1144 Speers Rd. Oakville · 905-842-7507 ·www.thirty750s.com