Don’t sacrifice pensions. That’s the message from Canadians, according to a new Ipsos Reid poll done for Postmedia News and Global TV.
An article in the Vancouver Sun reports that 49% of Canadians are prepared for a “bad-news budget” from the feds next week, and 57% don’t trust the Conservatives to ensure a “fair and reasonable” budget.
Speculations have swirled for months about plans for the feds to raise the age for Old Age Security benefits to 67 (from the current 65). Prime Minister Stephen Harper commented in Davos, Switzerland, in January that major reforms need to be made to Canada’s retirement system—a model that’s currently “unsustainable,” he said.
However, according to the poll, 70% of Canadians don’t feel the country’s social programs and seniors’ benefits are overly generous, and 68% disagree with increasing the retirement age to 67.