Mr. Speaker, firefighters are twice as likely to suffer fatalities on the job than the average Canadian worker. The rate of occupational related diseases for firefighters is among the highest.
For all these reasons firefighters cannot fully enjoy the Canada pension plan. They have been requesting for years that they be allowed to qualify without penalty for reduced benefits in the CPP at the age of 55 and for full benefits at age 60, rather than the current ages of 60 and 65.
Moreover, firefighters would like to see the government commit to the following: (a) increasing the maximum pension accrual rate from 2% to 2.33%, (b) improving aircraft rescue and firefighting standards at Canada's airports, (c) creating an agency with the mandate to investigate hazardous work sites and enforce workplace safety rules, and (d) creating a federally funded public safety officer compensation fund for the survivors of public safety officers killed in the line of duty.
I ask the government once again to do justice to these brave people who put their lives on the line and to heed their requests, which I think are perfectly reasonable and supported in the main by the commons finance committee. In particular, I am talking about the CPP section of their request.