Anxious depositors lit up credit union hotlines within hours of cabinet’s freeze on accounts held by Freedom Convoy sympathizers, records show. Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland acknowledged she was unsure of the reach of her own orders under the Emergencies Act, according to Blacklock's Reporter..“Just got word from our people in Atlantic Canada that our member hotlines are also lighting up in the East with people worried their accounts will be frozen because they donated to or support the truckers,” the Canadian Credit Union Association wrote Freeland’s office..“This is not regionally focused,” wrote an unidentified credit union executive. “It’s a problem in many parts of the country.” The warning was dated February 15, a day after Freeland announced a freeze of accounts under the Emergencies Act..Internal records show Freeland herself was uncertain of the impact of the freeze. “Here are some issues for us to think about,” wrote Freeland. “What have the banks actually been doing so far?”.“I would just say no one should contribute to an illegal activity,” replied Michael Sabia, deputy finance minister. “Obviously law enforcement is focused on the bigger issues.”.“We need to be clear on what you need to do to unfreeze your account if it was frozen because you made a donation,” wrote Freeland..Panicked credit union depositors withdrew millions following the February 14 order. “In the early days there was some degree of panic among some Canadians that their accounts may be frozen,” Martha Durdin, CEO of the Credit Union Association, testified March 17 at the House of Commons finance committee..“In those important days the government was less than clear about the intended targets of financial measures under the Emergencies Act,” said Durdin. “Many of our members expressed this concern and many Canadians made significant withdrawals from credit unions as a result, sometimes in the hundreds of thousands and on a few occasions in the millions of dollars.”.“While these withdrawals did not raise liquidity issues at all for credit unions, staff had to manage many very unhappy members,” said Durdin. Depositors expressed astonishment cabinet could unilaterally freeze accounts, she added..“I know credit unions had to really answer a lot of questions from members about under what circumstances the government can freeze accounts,” said Durdin. “Many Canadians felt surprised.”.A total of ten credit union accounts were frozen among 437 bank and bitcoin accounts. The freeze affecting $7.8 million was lifted February 23.
