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Charles Sousa, Ontario Minister of Finance, and Indira Naidoo-Harris, Associate Minister of Finance, have issued the following statement in response to the agreement in principle on Canada Pension Plan (CPP) enhancement at the Federal-Provincial-Territorial Finance Ministers' Meeting in Vancouver:
"There is an emerging retirement income challenge in Canada, and in Ontario. Workplace pensions are becoming less common and less adequate. Two-thirds of Ontario workers don't have access to a workplace pension plan, and only one in four younger workers -- aged 25 to 34 -- participate in a workplace pension plan. Too many Ontarians are starting to approach retirement without the pension and savings they need.
Our government ran on and won a majority mandate on a promise to enhance retirement income security for the people of Ontario. Today has seen a national agreement in principle to enhance the CPP that meets our commitment to hard-working Ontarians.
Ontario has always favoured a national solution to strengthening retirement security. Since 2013, we have been calling on the federal government to enhance CPP because a national solution provides many benefits to Ontarians, including portability and cost effectiveness, while providing coverage to more people.
In the absence of a willing or collaborative federal partner at that time, Ontario began establishing the Ontario Retirement Pension Plan (ORPP).
Ontario's extensive consultations in developing the ORPP determined that to meet Ontarians' retirement needs, CPP enhancement would have to be timely and provide a level of adequacy and coverage that reflects the design of the ORPP.
We are very pleased to have reached an agreement in principle to expand the Canada Pension Plan today. Without Ontario's continued leadership and strong support for improved retirement security, there would be no resolution today. Ontario will continue to be a leader as we take the necessary steps to formalize this national agreement. This is yet another example of the progress that can be made when we work together, and we look forward to more opportunities to collaborate with our federal, provincial and territorial counterparts in the future. "
Ontario PC Critic for the Ontario Retirement Pension Plan, Julia Munro, on the agreement in principle to expand the Canada Pension Plan:
“Helping individuals save for retirement is a noble goal. That is why the Ontario PC Caucus is pleased that the Wynne Liberals have listened to our calls that any retirement enhancement should be done through the Canadian Pension Plan. By making the decision to cooperate with their provincial and federal partners on a national strategy, Ontario is avoiding implementation of the Ontario Retirement Pension Plan (ORPP), a job-killing payroll tax that would have eroded business competitiveness, reduced the take-home pay of workers, and by the government’s own estimates killed 54,000 jobs per year.
We are hopeful that a formal agreement on CPP expansion will be reached by all provinces so that the reckless and unaffordable ORPP will not be implemented by the Wynne Liberal Government.
As Critic for the ORPP, in the Legislature following the October 2015 federal election I asked the Liberal Government to temporarily freeze implementation of the ORPP in order to allow for these exact negotiations on an enhanced CPP to take place.
Unfortunately, the Premier recklessly pushed forward with her ORPP framework and the administrative body, the Ontario Retirement Pension Plan Administration Corporation (ORPP AC). As a result, there are serious questions regarding the substantial unnecessary costs of the Wynne Liberals proceeding with the ORPP. We have seen this government appoint Liberal insiders - who will be paid thousands of dollars in severance - and continue to spend millions of dollars on advertisements in its push for the ORPP.
The Ontario PC Caucus calls upon the Liberal Government to release a full report on how much the ORPP has cost Ontarians, and how much it will cost to dismantle the now-unnecessary bureaucracy. Taxpayers deserve to know how their money was spent by this Liberal Government. We also request that, given the negative record of this government and former Pan Am CEO Saad Rafi, who now runs the ORPP AC, that the Liberal Government and the ORPP AC maintain all public records in accordance with the law for potential future review.”
Ontario NDP Leader Andrea Horwath issued the following statement:
“I want to congratulate the federal and 8 provincial governments for reaching an important agreement that will help improve retirement security for young Canadians.
I also want to congratulate everyone, especially labour (the CLC and Provincial Federations of Labour including the OFL), who has worked so hard to lay the groundwork for this agreement. Ontario’s New Democrats are proud to have stood with you, including our 2010 motion calling for an enhanced CPP.
Today is an important step towards ensuring that Ontarians can retire with dignity. However, there is still much more to do to help lift all Ontario seniors out of poverty and to help those who are on the cusp of retirement now, but who won’t benefit from these changes to the CPP.
Together, we must also do more to support our young people as the nature of work changes. We can build a province where people have good jobs that come with a decent paycheque, decent benefits, and a pension – a place where we can all share in our province’s enormous potential.” |
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