Canadian parliamentary background paper says that the recent growth of the payday loan industry

has focused attention on the industry and its practice of charging relatively high rates of interest.

While critics call for the outright prohibition of payday loans on the basis of usurious interest rates, proponents point to the growth of payday loan companies as evidence that the industry is fulfilling an unmet need for short-term credit and/or convenience.

Policy makers are left to define the best interests of the public, and to evaluate the effectiveness of the current approach to the payday loan industry in protecting that public interest.
(Source: Report Introduction ).

A key finding of the report was that [elimination of]..the payday loan industry [would]..in the absence of increased servicing by traditional lenders – leave some consumers without access to the credit or convenience they desire. (Source: Report Conclusion ).

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