Tag: pensions
Accidental Deliberations: Parliament in Review: December 7, 2011
Wednesday, December 7 packed plenty of contentious debate into an extremely short day, with a time allocation motion and debate on two bills fit within an afternoon sitting. The Big Issue Once again, Peter Van Loan sought to limit debate on one of the Cons’ bills – this time their
Continue readingImpolitical: Austerity for thee, not for me
This is the kind of thing that just doesn’t help when a Prime Minister is eyeing Old Age Security benefits for cuts: “Despite goal of restraint, Harper’s top bureaucrats rack up hefty travel costs.” Terrible optics and poor timing on that one. Elsewhere on the pensions issue, if you missed
Continue readingMontreal Simon: The Scary Humiliation of Jimbo Flaherty
Oh.My.Gnome. I see that little Jimbo Flaherty has been totally HUMILIATED. Again. Just the other day he was telling Canadians don’t worry about your pensions if you’re over fifty-seven. But then the sinister operatives in the PMO heard what he said. And they were not pleased. A government spokesman quickly discouraged
Continue readingMontreal Simon: Jimbo Flaherty and the Con Pension Scam
Well even by Jimbo Flaherty’s ghastly standards it was a bizarre and ugly sight. There he was late this afternoon, looking like he wanted to hide under a chair, or in his case a small stool. Sweating profusely, talking in a hoarse whisper, and promising you don’t have to worry
Continue readingRandom Ranting Raving and Ratings: How MPs voted on Opposition Motion to Protect OAS
The motion to maintain the age requirements for OAS at 65 was defeated. The motion read: That the House reject calls by the Prime Minister to balance the Conservative deficit on the backs of Canada’s seniors by means such as raising the age of eligibility for Old Age Security and
Continue readingRandom Ranting Raving and Ratings: Harper Conservatives on Liberal’s Plan for OAS – 2004
Back in 2004, the Harper Conservatives accused the Paul Martin Liberals of having a “hidden agenda” to raise the age to qualify for the Old Age Security to 67. The Conservative Party of Canada had acquired the information on the Liberals through access to information. As far as I… ..
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Wednesday Morning Links
Miscellaneous material for your mid-week reading. – The New Democrat comments on the need to develop the NDP as a movement as well as a party. And a national movement to protect pensions looks like a great place to start. – I’m generally in agreement with Trish Hennessy on the
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Monday Morning Links
Assorted content to start your week. – Tim Harper comments on the Harper Cons’ collusion in a war against Canada’s middle class: Under the Investment Canada Act, (foreign) takeovers are supposed to demonstrate a “net benefit” to Canada, but, in fact, are acting as an anvil on wages, living standards
Continue readingThe Progressive Economics Forum: The OAS Eligibility Age and Employment
It is argued that eligibility for OAS/GIS discourages older Canadians from remaining in the workforce, and that we need to keep them working to avoid labour shortages and a sharp rise in the so-called dependency ratio. But the fact of the matter is that 65 is not the trigger for
Continue readingCalgaryGrit: Stories of the Week
After spending the week talking about Liberal leadership on this blog, a brief look at what else is making news. 1. The Harper government has made noise about pension reform, prompting a round of howls from the opposition benches about Harper throwing grannies out on the street. I’ll reserve judgment
Continue readingThe Progressive Economics Forum: Is The OAS/GIS Program Unaffordable?
No. Of course not. Even if the government waves around scary large increases in nominal dollar terms. As has been widely reported, the most recent OAS actuarial report shows that total program expenditures will rise from $38.8 billion in 2011 to $107.9 billion in 2030. However, the dollar figure reflects,
Continue readingRandom Ranting Raving and Ratings: NDP Move to Protect Old Age Security – Vote on Feb 6th
The NDP used the Opposition day in Parliament today to put forward a motion that the federal government not pay for its agenda on the backs of Canadian Seniors by raising the age at which they will qualify for Old Age Security (OAS). Several times NDP members put the question
Continue readingThe Progressive Economics Forum: Raising The OAS Eligibility Age Would Raise Poverty in Old Age
Canadian Press have put out a story based on a research paper by Richard Shillington which was commissioned by HRSDC from Informetrica, and obtained by the CLC through an Access to Information request. Receiving OAS is required to makes seniors eligible for the GIS top up, which provides one in
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Thursday Morning Links
This and that for your Thursday reading. – Carol Goar notes that the Cons’ decision to mess with retirement security may be just the type of issue to rouse voters who had been lulled to sleep by promises of stability – which seems more plausible than Chantal Hebert’s theory that
Continue readingPolitics and Entertainment: Most Commentators and Economists Say Threshold Change for OAS is Unnecessary
Surveying recent media coverage including economists referenced or interviewed, one will discover that roughly 9 out of 10 commentators argue that the age threshold for OAS does not require changing to maintain sustainable funding for the program despite swelling seniors’ ranks and a decreasing Canadian population. Neither the argument that
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Wednesday Morning Links
Miscellaneous material for your mid-week reading. – Paul Wells points out that despite the Cons’ best efforts to get Canadians to panic over the state of our retirement system, the truth is that we’re actually better positioned now than was projected 20 years ago. (And for those looking inexplicably for
Continue readingMontreal Simon: The Cons and the Ponzi Pension Plan
I used to roar with laughter when Peter Van Loan got so agitated during Question Period, he’d regularly spill his glass of water all over Stephen Harper, and would be seen frantically hovering over Great Ugly Leader, dabbing his crotch with a paper towel. Having finally found his station in
Continue readingPeace, order and good government, eh?: Fun with figures
One of the hot topics of discussion right now involves the speculation that the Harper Government™ intends to raise the eligibility age for Old Age Security (OAS) and the Guaranteed Income Supplement (GIS) from 65 to 67. And here’s Brian Lee Crowley to argue that the real reason for doing
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