Thank you for the opportunity to participate this morning.
The Canadian Association of Retired Persons agrees that in order to sustain Canada's place in a competitive world, it's important that actions be taken to ensure that our citizens are healthy, that they have proper skills, and that they are presented with appropriate incentives to work and to save. We agree that it is imperative that our nation has the sound infrastructure that is required by citizens who are seeking a high quality of life. Older Canadians must be embraced in this process. Our population is living longer, healthier, and active lives. Seniors continue to have a lot to contribute, and society can benefit from what they--we--have to offer.
CARP's mandate is to promote and protect the rights and quality of life for mature Canadians. Our mission is to provide practical recommendations for the issues we raise. In conformity with this mission, and in order to sustain Canada's place in a competitive world, CARP's brief presents 46 recommendations, including the following: a House or a Senate standing committee to assess the impact of the demographic shift on our society and to identify and root out ageism and age discrimination wherever it exists; a national home care program that includes chronic and community continuing care, with transparency and accountability; a national mental health strategy, as outlined in the Kirby-Keon report, with the immediate set up of a commission; a national family caregivers' support strategy; pan-Canadian wait time guarantees; Canada assuming a leading role globally in creating and protecting safe, healthy, and sustainable clean air and water; long-term CMHC funding to the provinces and territories for subsidies and grants for affordable rental housing--please don't privatize CMHC, in fact, use the surplus to build more truly affordable housing; funding and tax credits to make continuing education, exercise, etc., available, accessible, and affordable for all seniors, using as a model the tax credit for children's sports activities; abolition of mandatory retirement where it exists under federal government jurisdiction; the federal government's proposed $3 billion CPP contribution to be put into OAS/GIS instead; increased OAS annual payments in order to meet the real cost of living--not excluding volatile items in the CPI--thus enabling seniors to purchase more, as well as to pay more taxes; GIS payments to the level of the low income cut-off line across the country; allowing all registered retirement pensions to be split; direct 100% access to LIF principal in federally regulated pensions, such as is now available to LIF holders over 90, we are told; the age of the conversion of RRSPs into RRIFs restored to age 71; and seniors to determine the annual amount they withdraw from their RRIF or LRIF.
We also would like to see the benefits of filing an income tax return clearly and broadly advertised to seniors, highlighting, for example, deductions, benefits, and GST rebates; continuation of the current five-year deadline for paying pension shortfalls and the retention of under-funded pensions as a legal liability on a company's books; and the taxable rate on U.S. social security received by Canadian residents restored to 50%.
Canada is on the cusp of a major demographic evolution, as is the rest of the world, and about one quarter of our population will be 65 by 2030. If society chooses to ignore them, everyone will suffer. In the brief moment I have, I just want to point out that quality of life has a strong correlation with the productivity of our country. I have to express CARP's shock and dismay that the federal government would arbitrarily determine value for money, without any public or stakeholder consultation, or presenting alternative policies. These cuts will adversely impact a lot of CARP's constituents, Status of Women volunteers, adult literacy, and more. We urge the government to rethink this proposal.
Thank you very much.