The Government of Ontario wants the Canada Pension Plan (CPP) to be improved and will set up its own plan if needed.
The province is pushing for a CPP enhancement so residents will have the support they need when they retire, says Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne.
“I am confident that the federal government can work with Canada’s premiers toward a solution,” she adds, “but we are also prepared to move forward with a made-in-Ontario plan if necessary.”
Earlier this month, Prince Edward Island unveiled a plan to increase the payroll contribution rate to 13% from the current level of 9.9% for most Canadians.
But the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) opposes CPP expansion, arguing that it would reduce job growth.
“It doesn’t matter how you dress it up, a mandatory pension increase hurts small businesses, their employees, and the economy,” says CFIB president Dan Kelly. “We’ve seen various proposals to increase CPP and QPP, and Canadian entrepreneurs do not support any of them. The latest ideas from P.E.I. and Ontario are just variations on a misguided theme.”
CPP enhancement will be on the agenda when provincial and territorial finance ministers meet in Toronto on Friday.
The federal government and seven provinces with at least two-thirds of the population must agree before changes to the CPP can be made.
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