Wednesday, June 16, 2010

Pension Reform Canada vs Europe

Canadians might be suprised to read the free lunch in Europe is over for the socialists. The European governments have begun to tackle debts and deficits.

The G8 and G20 will be dealing with many issues including the winding down of stimulus without derailing the global recovery.

Canada continues to be the envy of the OECD with 6.1% GDP growth in the first quarter in 2010.
  • France will raise the retirement age from 60 to 62 in 2018 in an effort to get the country's spiraling public finances under control, the labor minister said Wednesday.
  • Germany, for example, is to gradually raise its retirement age from 65 to 67, starting in 2012 and wrapping up in 2029.
  • Dutch pension funds are in danger of becoming insolvent..
link here.

Hiking CPP premiums eyed as part of pension reform- Flaherty is proposing a number of initiatives, including what he calls a modest and gradual increase in Canada Pension Plan payroll premiums.


"I've made it clear from the beginning that the government's first principle is do no harm," Flaherty said Sunday. "We have a Canada Pension Plan that is the envy of the world and it is actuarially sound for the next 75 years."

The existing system is not balanced. Private pensions are not funded equally in comparison to public pensions. See here. The Lib-Dem coalition will resist changes to the public pensions of large unions.

Europeans have been dumping the socialist parties that are blocking reform for more fiscal conservatives governments.

Will our Canadian media reflect the reality of the shift in Europe and the end of the free lunch for the socialists in Canada?

2 comments:

Simeon (Sam) George Drakich said...

The CPP is unsustainable, nothing more than a Ponzi scheme.
Flaherty has laboured us with a tax increase plus shoring up Dalton's falling numbers.
I Ruby Dhalla would have the entire wealth of Canada given to India.

maryT said...

Pension reform should start with MPs. Instead of 6 yrs to qualify, how about 6 terms. No double dipping, is you get an mp pension you can't get any other form of income, other than investments. No appointment to boards, lawfirms, consulting to name a few.
Their mp pension would disqualify them for the OAS, but not the CPP.