Ontario’s Minister of Revenue, John Wilkinson, has called on the financial planning industry to pursue a higher level of standards for the profession.

Speaking at a conference organized by the Financial Planners Standards Council in Toronto on Monday, Wilkinson, a certified financial planner, said there was never a more urgent time for the industry to work with regulators and the government to pursue stronger industry standards.

“This is long overdue,” he said. “I think now is a wonderful time to reach out to government and talk about the need for us to elevate those standards.”

Wilkinson noted that in the midst of the most significant financial turmoil in 80 years, financial advice is becoming increasingly important to Canadians.

“If there was ever a time that Canadians need to have independent financial planning advice, it’s right now,” he said. “The world is not going to get less volatile; it’s going to be more volatile. That’s why the timeless tenants of our profession will become more and more valuable for consumers.”

At the heart of a trusted client-advisor relationship, said Wilkinson, is ethics. He said the onus was on the industry to elevate standards in this area in order to protect consumers.

“Government itself cannot regulate ethical behaviour,” he said. “It’s the industry, it’s the profession that can regulate ethical behaviour.”

Ethical standards are crucial in order for the entire industry to maintain the trust of the public, he added, particularly as the financial crisis has significantly challenged this level of trust.

“Only advisors understand how high that margin is set, and how important it is for us to maintain the trust of the public.”

IE