Archived - Minister Morneau Talks About Canada Pension Plan With Toronto Students

October 13, 2016 – Toronto, Ontario – Department of Finance Canada

Middle class Canadians are working harder than ever, but many are worried that they won’t have enough put away for their retirement. One in four families approaching retirement—1.1 million families—are at risk of not saving enough. That’s why the Government of Canada is taking action to help Canadians achieve their goal of a safe, secure and dignified retirement by working with the provinces and territories to strengthen the Canada Pension Plan (CPP).

Minister of Finance Bill Morneau was in Toronto today, where he talked with high school students at Lawrence Park Collegiate Institute about his role as Finance Minister and the historic agreement to strengthen the CPP. Minister Morneau, who was joined for the discussion by Marco Mendicino, Member of Parliament for Eglinton–Lawrence, and Mike Colle, Member of Provincial Parliament for Eglinton–Lawrence, told students that there will be more money from the CPP waiting for Canadians when they retire so they can focus on what’s important to them, rather than on worrying about making ends meet.

Canada’s governments agreed on June 20, 2016 to strengthen the CPP to give Canadians a more generous public pension that will help them retire in dignity. All nine CPP participating provinces have now confirmed their support for implementing the agreement, and the Government of Canada has introduced legislation towards making the agreed-upon enhancement a reality.

• Once fully phased in, the CPP enhancement will increase CPP benefits by as much as 50 per cent.
• The CPP provides a secure, predictable benefit, which means that Canadians can worry less about outliving their savings, or having their savings impacted by significant market downturns.
• CPP benefits are fully indexed to prices, which reduces the risk that inflation will gradually erode the purchasing power of retirement savings.
• The CPP is a good fit for Canada’s changing job market. It helps to fill the gap left by declining workplace pension coverage, and it is portable across jobs and provinces, which promotes labour mobility.
• The CPP is a large program with millions of contributors, which allows the CPP Investment Board to take advantage of economies of scale in order to deliver strong net returns.
• With the automatic collection of contributions for all workers, the CPP is a simple way to save.

• Government Introduces Legislation for a Stronger Canada Pension Plan and a More Secure Retirement for Canadians
  (2016-10-06)
• Government of Canada Welcomes British Columbia’s Support for a Stronger Canada Pension Plan
  (2016-10-04)
• Canadians Can Count on a Stronger, Financially Sustainable Canada Pension Plan
  (2016-09-27)
• Strengthened Canada Pension Plan Will Mean a More Secure Retirement and a Better Quality of Life for Middle Class Canadians
  (2016-09-19)
• Statement by the Minister of Finance on Historic Agreement to Strengthen the Canada Pension Plan
  (2016-07-15)
• Manitoba Agrees to Strengthen the Canada Pension Plan (CPP) and the Retirement Security of Canadians
  (2016-07-07)
• Canada’s Finance Ministers Agree to Strengthen Canada Pension Plan
  (2016-06-20)

Annie Donolo
Press Secretary
Office of the Minister of Finance
613-769-7187

Media Relations
Department of Finance Canada
613-369-4000