OTTAWA— Following their first meeting of the winter sitting of Parliament, the Liberal caucus today urged the Conservative government to ease the fears of Canada’s seniors and baby boomers, and keep their campaign promise to maintain Canada’s Old Age Security (OAS).
“Our constituents are calling, emailing and visiting our constituency offices to tell us they want the Conservatives to take their hands off their pensions,” said Mr. Rae. “During the last election Stephen Harper said he would not reduce transfer payments to provinces or individuals. But now he’s threatening to take away tens of thousands of dollars of support from the seniors who need it most.”
Reacting to Stephen Harper’s threat to cut guaranteed benefits to seniors, the Liberal Party of Canada began an online petition where Canadians concerned with the future of their pensions could have their voices heard. In less than a week, the petition has collected over 12,000 signatures and the number is quickly growing.
“People are genuinely worried for their financial security in their retirement,” said Ms. Sgro, “and experts have already agreed that our OAS and pensions are sustainable. We need Stephen Harper to stop with his ideological agenda that threatens the financial security of our seniors and commit to maintaining the OAS.”
In response to feedback from constituents, Liberal MP Sean Casey has given notice of a Private Member’s Motion calling on the government to honour the contributions our seniors have made to Canada and commit to maintaining the services, such as OAS and the Guaranteed Income Supplement (GIS), that they have earned.
Background:
To view a comprehensive background document on OAS and GIS, including charts and graphs, please click here.
The full text of Mr. Casey’s Private Member’s Motion is as follows:
That, in the opinion of the House, the government should: (a) recognize the contributions that the baby boom generation has made in building Canada; (b) affirm its support for the Old Age Security program; (c) commit to maintaining the sixty-five year qualifying age contained in section 3 of the Old Age Security Act; and (d) recognize that Old Age Security and the Guaranteed Income Supplement, a program designed to help low income seniors, are inextricably linked and ensure that they continue to have identical ages of eligibility.
To view the Liberal Party petition on pensions, please click here.
