The federal government has pushed back on criticism from an MP that its recent budget plan to explore the concept of “halal mortgages” for Muslim Canadians could mean recognizing Sharia law in government financing.
“This is a religious exception that goes well beyond accommodation,” said Mr. Champoux, as first covered by Blacklock’s Reporter. “The introduction of an element of Sharia law into the Canadian legislative regime would be a serious precedent.”
The recently released budget document Fairness For Every Generation said cabinet is exploring new measures to “expand access to alternative financing products,” such as halal mortgages.
Islamic law considers usury a sin, and halal mortgages would offer modified payment structures to bypass lending money and charging interest.
Options could include “changes in the tax treatment of these products or a new regulatory sandbox for financial service providers, while ensuring adequate consumer protections are in place,” the budget document reads.
Revenue Minister Marie-Claude Minister Bibeau responded to Mr. Champoux in the House, saying that the government is looking into the issue “to ensure it is done properly, nothing more.”
“This is a financial tool that is absolutely not being proposed by our government. We are interested in the product. We want to know if it is fair, if it complies with the rules,” she said. “We are simply going to look at the issue, but our government has no intention of supporting it. We just want to make sure that it is fair.”
A list of key findings from the research included the need to develop “financing options that are not interest-based, providing culturally sensitive housing” for the country’s 1.8 million observant Muslims, as well as offering ”culturally relevant housing services.”
The discussion of halal mortgages followed in-house Privy Council research targeting Muslim focus groups in 2023.
