Mr. Speaker, maybe the government got away with taking $25 billion from the employment insurance fund and unemployed workers, but with Bill C-78, it is taking on the most powerful voting constituency in the country, senior citizens and retired pensioners.
If the government thinks seniors will sit idly by and let it take the $30 billion surplus from the public service pension plan, it would be well advised to remember what happened to Brian Mulroney when he tried to de-index the Canada pension plan.
Dozens of seniors groups are on the Hill today to show their opposition to Bill C-78: the Armed Forces Pensioners Association, the Association of Public Service Alliance Retirees, the Canadian Association of Union Retirees, the Ontario Coalition of Senior Citizens Organizations, the RCMP Veterans Association and many more representing millions of Canadian retirees.
All pension surpluses are the sole property of the employee. They are deferred wages to be used for nothing else than improving benefits. The message that these groups bring to Ottawa is simple, “Get your hands off our pension plan”.