Statement from Ontario PC ORPP Critic Julia Munro on the Expansion of the CPP
The following is a statement from the Ontario PC Critic for the Ontario Retirement Pension Plan, Julia Munro, on the agreement in principle to expand the Canada Pension Plan:
“Helping individuals save for retirement is a noble goal. That is why the Ontario PC Caucus is pleased that the Wynne Liberals have listened to our calls that any retirement enhancement should be done through the Canadian Pension Plan. By making the decision to cooperate with their provincial and federal partners on a national strategy, Ontario is avoiding implementation of the Ontario Retirement Pension Plan (ORPP), a job-killing payroll tax that would have eroded business competitiveness, reduced the take-home pay of workers, and by the government’s own estimates killed 54,000 jobs per year.
We are hopeful that a formal agreement on CPP expansion will be reached by all provinces so that the reckless and unaffordable ORPP will not be implemented by the Wynne Liberal Government.
As Critic for the ORPP, in the Legislature following the October 2015 federal election I asked the Liberal Government to temporarily freeze implementation of the ORPP in order to allow for these exact negotiations on an enhanced CPP to take place.
Unfortunately, the Premier recklessly pushed forward with her ORPP framework and the administrative body, the Ontario Retirement Pension Plan Administration Corporation (ORPP AC). As a result, there are serious questions regarding the substantial unnecessary costs of the Wynne Liberals proceeding with the ORPP. We have seen this government appoint Liberal insiders – who will be paid thousands of dollars in severance – and continue to spend millions of dollars on advertisements in its push for the ORPP.
The Ontario PC Caucus calls upon the Liberal Government to release a full report on how much the ORPP has cost Ontarians, and how much it will cost to dismantle the now-unnecessary bureaucracy. Taxpayers deserve to know how their money was spent by this Liberal Government. We also request that, given the negative record of this government and former Pan Am CEO Saad Rafi, who now runs the ORPP AC, that the Liberal Government and the ORPP AC maintain all public records in accordance with the law for potential future review.”