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Letter: No government, of any party, should have power to manipulate pension funds
By Letter to the Editor on July 30, 2025.
Prior to the last election Danielle Smith stated that an Alberta Pension Plan was not an election issue. Since then her party has spent millions of our dollars promoting one. After 63% of respondents rejected it in last year’s survey, the UCP is once again trying to sell the idea. The new sales pitch video, screening online and during the UCP “Alberta Next” meetings, suggests an APP “could” require lower premiums for the same payout or “could” lead to higher benefits. Given current conditions – Albertans generally being younger than those in other provinces and a successful oil and gas industry – this is a reasonable assessment for the near future (the Quebec Plan had lower premiums compared to the CPP to start, now they pay more). To this point most Albertans do not feel this potential benefit is worth the associated risks. Keeping their retirement money in an established and stable fund is wiser than handing it over to politicians to do with as they please. Outside its long-term success and broader population base, the most notable difference between the CPP and an APP is control over its structure. The federal government, nine provinces and three territories have a voice in how the CPP operates. The federal government is in charge, but there are 12 other bodies watching to ensure the CPP is free of undue political influence. An APP would have one government without meaningful oversight in charge. That government would be hiring the people running it, and nothing would keep politicians from influencing where pension money would be invested. This would be as true for an NDP government as for a UCP government – anyone not trusting one or the other (or both) would be hard pressed to be convinced that is good idea. The UCP wants access to Albertans’ CPP pension money. Those who think that is a good idea have more faith in politicians than I do. Ed Dick Medicine Hat 11-10
So while those of us from the world of finance, who had ties to the oil industry, know Albertans have been cheated out of $1.2 trillion and what Norway and Alaska have accomplished proves it Smith continues to treat us like morons.
What has us former longtime conservative supporters so furious is the lack of respect they show our children, and grandchildren with the massive debt they are burdening them with and what Global Warming could do to them. There is nothing intelligent about that., is there?
Alberta is 15% of the Canadian population but contributes 53% to the CPP. Completely unfair. Are you afraid of getting a bigger check in the mail?
While gullible Albertans continue to believe the lies these Reformers feed them lawyers, accountants, economists, bankers and the Federal Liberal Government point out that 20 to 25% is a more realistic amount than 53% and oilmen agree. Their horrible record of unemployment over the years proves it.
Lawyers warn that if Smith gets control of our pensions she could cancel ones where we have received more than we ever paid into it like we know we have. We are getting 8 times more than we paid into it and aren’t dumb enough to risk giving that up , so why would we?
With Alberta only having 15% of the population of Canada as Taylor correctly states wouldn’t you think he would have questioned how they could have possibly paid 53% of the Canada Pension Plan without complaining about doing it?
We know that it wasn’t a problem paying it for us, or we certainly would have been questioning it wouldn’t you?