Joe O'Toole (Independent)

I strongly support the argument put forward by Senator Brian Hayes in respect of credit cards. It is the view of some commentators throughout Europe that countries should introduce legislation to restrict the number of credit cards a person can hold and to require banks and other financial institutions to check on the number of credit cards held by a person before issuing a new one. In addition, such legislation would stipulate that in order to move beyond the limit and acquire an additional card, a person must cancel an existing card. This would deal with the issue raised by Senator Brian Hayes.

Current arrangements regarding credit cards are anti-competitive and run contrary to the rules and tenets of the Treaty of Rome and the European movement. Due to the current anti-competitive franchising arrangements, a person can only acquire a credit card in his or her own country. This state of affairs is ridiculous given the existence of a common European market. These arrangements are both anti-competitive and dangerous.

The Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment visited China last week. I would like to discuss the outcome of his trip with him. I also wish to ask whether he raised the issue of human and civil rights in China on his trip, particularly the attitude of the Government and the Communist Party of China to the Falun Gong movement, an issue which Senator Norris and I previously raised. The movement's members have been persecuted and thrown into concentration camps and, while it is difficult to believe it still happens in this day and age, are being used for live organ donations against their will, which has been proven beyond doubt.

Democratically-elected politicians in various parts of the world are trying to start a movement in respect of this matter. Members of the Canadian Senate and its other House have tried to start a worldwide independent investigation into the persecution of the Falun Gong movement on mainland China. Will the Minister address this House regarding his trip and discuss this issue so that we could ask him to raise with the Chinese Government, the EU, the UN and any appropriate international group the need to have the attitude of the Communist Party of China and the Chinese Government towards the Falun Gong movement discussed and investigated? If we have reached the stage at which the dollar and euro signs gained by doing business with the 1 billion people in China are more important than the way their country is treated, we are going down a slippery slope.