Archive for the ‘Social Security Debates’ Category
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Tax savings on bigger CPP far off
Wednesday, November 10th, 2010
Nov 10 2010
… requiring workers and their employers to contribute more to CPP would make for fewer low-income workers, and workers with income not so low, qualifying for the tax-free Guaranteed Income Supplement (GIS) to the Old Age Pension. Both of these pensions are a significant cost item in the federal budget, and the cost is projected to soar as the Baby Boom generation starts to pass the age of 65. GIS benefits are phased out as income, excluding Old Age Security, increases… this reality may help to explain why Flaherty joined Duncan in trying to persuade other provinces to throw their support behind an expanded CPP.
Tags: pensions, standard of living, tax
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A Basic Income Plan for Canadians with Severe Disabilities
Monday, November 8th, 2010
November 8, 2010
… a proposed new federal Basic Income program that would replace provincial/territorial social assistance for most working age persons with severe disabilities. The Basic Income program would be a close model of the long-established and well-regarded Guaranteed Income Supplement for low-income seniors. The second reform is to convert the existing non-refundable Disability Tax Credit into a refundable Disability Tax Credit that would extend compensation for the extra costs of disability to the lowest-income people with disabilities.
Tags: disabilities, pensions, standard of living
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The Liberals are talking pension reform
Monday, November 8th, 2010
Nov. 7, 2010
… the federal Liberals deserve praise for going where they should logically fear to tread. According to a party “white paper”… they are now contemplating an election platform that would include a voluntary supplemental pension plan and would ease the rules that currently limit retroactive payments for late claimants of Canada Pension Plan (CPP) benefits to one year… Any attempt at pension reform should look at the whole picture, not just savings vehicles.
Tags: economy, pensions, standard of living
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CPP is in need of a boost
Sunday, November 7th, 2010
Nov. 6, 2010
… consultant Greg Hurst… identifies six “myths” propagated by Big CPP proponents. One is that CPP operates as a standalone program. Many employer pensions are integrated with CPP so any expansion of contributions and benefits will impact the rest of the system. Another myth is that CPP is inexpensive to administer. Perhaps most serious is the notion that CPP is self-funded and imposes no tax burden. Public-sector employers pushing for a big CPP are funded by taxpayers… as are CPP contributions made by those employers.
Tags: pensions, poverty, standard of living
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Fighting the new ‘normal’ [retirement benefits]
Saturday, October 30th, 2010
Oct. 30, 2010
BMO has released a report — When to Retire, Age Matters — that may cause Canadians to emulate Germany and keep working as long as possible. This is counter to a brief vogue when Canadians sought earlier retirement. In the 1970s, the median retirement age was 65, which fell to 60.6 by 1997. But it edged up to 61 in 2005… the simplest fix would be to raise — perhaps double — the base annual earnings on which CPP is calculated. Currently, it’s around $47,000. Doubling it to $94,000 would almost double benefits but not the required contributions from employees and employers.
Tags: pensions, standard of living
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Ontario report calls for boost to pensions
Friday, October 29th, 2010
Oct. 29, 2010
The province issued a consultation paper Friday, asking for public input on proposals to improve pensions for Ontarians as part of a national initiative… current rules only allow pension plans to be offered by an employer to an employee. This limits options for people who are self-employed or who work for small companies that cannot afford to offer a pension plan. The report asks for input on proposals to allow financial institutions to offer pension plans with participation from multiple employers, allowing more companies to offer retirement benefits to workers and reducing administration costs by creating large pools of funds.
Tags: pensions, standard of living
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Should Canada have a guaranteed annual income?
Wednesday, October 20th, 2010
October 20, 2010
People from the left find the GAI attractive because they like the idea of a secure and (potentially) generous benefit. People from the right like the idea of a lower tax rate and better work incentives for lower income people and a dismantling of the ‘welfare wall’… a lot of people already effectively have a GAI… Would it be worthwhile extending and enhancing a GAI to all Canadians? At least two major barriers stand in the way.
Tags: economy, ideology, poverty, standard of living
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Pension reform should aid women
Tuesday, October 19th, 2010
Oct 18 2010
Retired Canadian women aren’t getting their fair share of federal pension benefits compared to men, Ontario Finance Minister Dwight Duncan said Monday… that’s just another reason the entire system of retirement benefits needs to be overhauled with an eye to phased-in “modest” benefits increases… As of December 2009, the average annual CPP retirement benefit for women was $4,906.56, compared with that of men of $7,128.24 or about 69 per cent.
Tags: pensions, women
Posted in Social Security Debates | 1 Comment »
The struggles of our neighbours
Thursday, October 14th, 2010
October 13, 2010
… this challenge was actually one of the most difficult things I’ve done in the past few years. Not to be ungrateful, but I honestly struggled through every single meal… But as much as I hated the experience, I also appreciated the experience. I learned something about the plight of the impoverished… As frustrated as I was by five days of food-bank goods, I cannot imagine the constant frustration of that reliance.
Tags: Health, poverty, standard of living
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Innovative Pension Reforms Provide Lessons for Canada
Monday, October 11th, 2010
September 28, 2010
Until now Canada’s retirement income system has done well in alleviating elders’ poverty and helping workers maintain their standard of living in retirement. But according to Patrik Marier, the latter achievement is threatened by problems in the coverage and governance of occupational pensions, and by the voluntary nature and high cost of savings alternatives… Patrik Marier looks at pension reforms in Norway, Sweden, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and Saskatchewan to determine if there are lessons for Canada, and finds that all five systems have features that would complement Canada’s public pensions.
Tags: pensions, standard of living
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