$70 Million & Two Years Later…

QUEEN’S PARK – Since 2014 the Ontario Liberal government has been floating the idea of a stand-alone Ontario pension. In an unprecedented show of agreement, all the major trade associations saw that it was a poorly planned scheme. They all agreed it would cost jobs and discourage investment in the province.

Yesterday we learned this latest Wynne Liberal Government scheme will cost tax payers $70 million, and deliver $0 in benefits. 

“Given this government’s track record on cancellation costs, I anticipate that the final cost will be significantly higher,” noted MPP Julia Munro, the Ontario PC Critic responsible for the Ontario Retirement Pension Plan (ORPP) and MPP for York-Simcoe.

Six senior executives, including several well-known Liberal insiders, will receive a combined $2 million in severance payments.

Despite repeated warnings from the Ontario Chamber of Commerce, the Canadian Federation of Independent Business, and the Canadian Manufacturers and Exporters about the damaging costs of the ORPP, the Wynne Liberals continued to push ahead.  In fact, the Ontario PC Caucus continued to advocate for enhancement through the CPP, urging the Wynne Liberals to put the ORPP on hold.

“This exercise in state financial planning just sends a further negative message to those interested in investing in Ontario and creating jobs in our province,” Munro concluded. “Cancelling the ORPP has left the huge severance payouts for executives on the table but the taxpayer picks up the bill.”