Prince Edward Island and Manitoba have joined Ontario’s Technical Advisory Group on Retirement Security.
“We know that our voices are always stronger when we stand together,” says Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne. “I am confident that by working with other provinces, we can find a viable, responsible solution to protect workers in their retirement.”
Wynne met with P.E.I. Premier Robert Ghiz on Wednesday to discuss options to enhance retirement income security.
P.E.I. will be represented by Sandy Stewart, secretary of economic, trade, policy and strategy of the province’s Department of Innovation and Advanced Learning, while Manitoba will be represented by Ewald Boschman, the province’s former deputy minister of finance.
An additional member, Murray Gold, managing partner at Koskie Minsky and pension counsel to the Ontario Federation of Labour, has also joined the advisory group.
Keith Ambachtsheer, director of the Rotman International Centre for Pension Management; David Denison, former president and CEO of the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board; Susan Eng, vice-president for advocacy at CARP; Melissa Kennedy, senior vice-president, general counsel and corporate affairs, at Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan; Jim Keohane, president and CEO of the Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan; and Bill Morneau, executive chairman of Morneau Shepell, are the other members of the group.
The group will explore the most effective alternatives to enhancing the Canada Pension Plan.
Paul Martin, the former prime minister and former federal finance minister, is also working with the province as a special advisor.
The Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) says small businesses are worried about the prospect of P.E.I. and Manitoba also participating in a provincial pension plan.
“After breathing a sigh of relief with the end of talks to expand the Canada Pension Plan, small business owners in Ontario, Prince Edward Island and Manitoba are facing the even worse idea of a provincial pension plan,” says CFIB president Dan Kelly. “This would put entrepreneurs in provinces that sign on to the plan at a competitive disadvantage to those in provinces that don’t hit their citizens and businesses with new payroll taxes.”
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