Next General Membership Meeting is March 26, 2024

by

Please join us in our next General Membership Meeting on March 26, 2024 at 19.00 where the members below will be sworn in.

Congratulations to those below:

President — Frank Donegan — acclaimed for 2 year term

Treasurer — Vincent Ricioppo — acclaimed for 2 year term

Sergeant At Arms — Mike Hill — acclaimed for 1 year term

Executive At Large — James Annan — acclaimed for 1 year term

Trustee — Danny Molina — acclaimed for 3 year term

Alberta Pension Plan Talking Points from Danielle Smith

by

Alberta Pension Plan Talking Points from Danielle Smith:

SMITH: Alberta’s share of the Canadian Pension Plan funds in 2027 will be 53% of the CPP assets ($334 billion). REALITY: It’s absurd to think Alberta can take 53% of the assets managed by the CPP. Experts have ridiculued this number, and questioned the legal, practical, and moral ability of Alberta to secure these assets. If their formula was applied to every province, the total taken out of the CPP would be well above 100% of all the money.

SMITH: Alberta will be able to draw $334 billion from the Canada Pension Plan to form the base fund of a new Alberta Pension Plan. REALITY: The other provinces will never agree to pull 53% of the funds from the CPP. The federal government and the other provinces simply won’t let this happen. Economists have estimated the maximum amount an Alberta Pension Plan could ask for would be somewhere between 10% and 20%.

SMITH: The benefits of an Alberta Pension Plan will be higher, and contributions will be lower. REALITY: The rates are based on the 53% withdrawal. Since that is an impossible scenario, lower contributions and higher pension benefits will never happen. Even with this unrealistic assumption, the government’s report still shows the cost of an Alberta Pension Plan coming into line with the Canada Pension Plan over time.

SMITH: Under an Alberta Pension Plan, I can get a $5,000-$10,000 retirement bonus. REALITY: This sounds good, but like the lower rates and higher benefits promise, this type of benefit is based on flawed calculations that will never become reality.

SMITH: We will be able to take an Alberta Pension Plan with us wherever we live in Canada. REALITY: Portability of an Alberta Plan is in no way guaranteed. The CPP would need to accept a portability agreement with a potential Alberta Pension Plan. The rest of the country will not be in a mood to negotiate with Alberta if we break up a successful pension plan. If portability is not achieved, workers who move to or from a different province during their working years risk a smaller pension in retirement.

SMITH: The Alberta Pension Plan would be more stable than the Canadian Pension Plan. REALITY: Experts estimate the CPP is sustainable in its current form for at least the next 75 years. Risk pooled with larger groups creates stability. Bigger pension plans are safer than smaller ones. The claim that an Alberta plan would be more stable is based on the ability to withdraw 53% of the money from the CPP. As discussed above, this number has been ridiculed by experts, along with the ability of Alberta to access these assets.

SMITH: The Alberta Pension Plan will have better investment returns and will be able to invest in Alberta. Large pension funds invest all over Canada and all over the world, seeking out the best opportunities to make money. The Canada Pension Plan invests in many Alberta companies and assets. In fact, investments managed by the Alberta government have had much lower long term returns that the Canada Pension Plan.

CONCLUSION: The CPP is one of the most successful pension plans in the world. Danielle Smith’s plan is based on shaky assumptions and very faulty math.