The Globe and Mail reports in its Monday edition that Ottawa said in its recent budget it would amend the Criminal Code to enhance enforcement of the criminal interest rate to prevent "harmful illegal lenders" from circumventing it. The Globe's guest columnist Kelsy Rolfe writes that Ottawa also plans to work with the provinces to harmonize consumer protections, including strengthening pay day loan regulations, enhancing transparency around high-cost loans and potentially limiting advertising of such products. Ottawa has said the new interest rate is meant to protect lower-income, newcomer and other vulnerable Canadians who cannot qualify for loans through most traditional banks, from "predatory lenders." Experts and advocates for low-income Canadians are divided on how effective the changes will be. The Canadian Lenders Association -- an industry group representing regulated lenders, including the Big Five banks and alternative lenders such as goeasy and Fairstone Financial -- launched a public campaign against the move. They said lenders would no longer be able to lend to millions of Canadians if the interest rate were lowered. Lenders also sent letters to some borrowers warning they could lose access to credit.