Should we spend some of Canada’s CPP funds?

Thank you for contributing to Hub Forum. If you are interested in reading more from Mark Johnson, check out his article on government spending: https://thehub.ca/2023-05-03/mark-johnson-the-provinces-are-learning-the-hard-way-that-federal-dollars-come-with-strings-attached/

It is never a good idea to let politicians near saved money,, they will waste it as they always do

We pay more than enough taxes to fund the things that government should be funding. This is money from employees and employers, they should be the first to realize gains from the growth in the fund, either by cutting premiums or increasing benefits.

No. We cannot go the same route as what we have seen happen in the US, and now there is no more money for Social Security in that country. If we let the government do this once the CPP funds will be revisited often and drained. The federal government is receiving enough money through taxes to pay for everything…we only need a government in place that understands common sense fiscal responsibility.

YES SENIORS ARE STRUGILING WE NEED HELP
INCREASE OUR CPP BY 20%

It should and can only be used for 2 things: to reduce premiums, or to increase benefits. Or some combination of both. It should absolutely not be used as an ‘investment’ in other things like transit, schools etc. First of all, governments have a horrendous record of ‘investing’ taxpayer money. Secondly, and more importantly, diverting CPP funds in this way would be tantamount to theft…this is a pension plan paid for directly by the contributions of workers and employers. It is NOT general revenues to be diverted by a government-of-the-day to its own priorities and projects.

Under no circumstances should the current government be allowed near this fund…

Keep it out of the hands of politicians! They will misuse it on ill begotten plans leaving Canadians in the lurch. Increase the pensions of seniors who are struggling. That is what is is for.

We’ve paid into this all our lives, this should be a tax free benefit…

First and foremost, I DO NOT TRUST the Federal Canadian Government. Having said that, they IN NO WAY, should be anywhere near, or have kind of say what so ever, as to what should or shouldn’t be done with the CPP surplus. They are supposed to answer to us, the people of Canada. Not the other way around.
Speaking as a senior, I have worked and paid into the CPP for over 50 years. Prisoners, new Canadians and welfare recipients receive more money to live on than the seniors of Canada receive. In my opinion, employees and employers should have their contribution lowered and the CPP pension and the Old Age Security (OAS) should be increased to at least meet the cost of living which has been grossly mismanaged by Federal Canadian governments especially of today, as well as those of the past. What is a fair percentage of $200 billion dollars? Governments have no problem increasing their salaries. Why are seniors and the middle class always taken advantage of? Is it a coincidence this surplus announcement comes with an federal election on the horizon?

Don’t touch the CPP. Efforts to pull “surplus” will destroy the fund and all its investment strategies. Conrad Black tried it some time ago. Ruined the pension plan. There will be times when the markets don’t perform as well. Then the “surplus” won’t be there and those who advocated for stealing the “surplus” will stand by and let the fund fail. All for the good of “individual responsibility” – What utter rot. Leave the fund alone.

This is money generated by pension contributions. This money is NOT social security driven benefits, nor is it tax revenue. This is money belonging to the people who contributed to the PENSION plan. A combination of pension increases as well as a reduction in contributions is needed. The Federal Government should have no say in it’s use outside of the pension focus, period.

Leave CPP funds alone!
That belongs to the people that contributed. It’s a pension fund, not a rainy days fund for a government determined to spend us into a debt hole it may take generations to dig out of.

As with most pension funds, if excess exists, increase the pay out to pensioners. With all the increases in pat to government politicians, living wage, increased minimum wage, and city’s raising taxes in the 20% range, and many award of teachers pushing for a COLA clause.. but, nobody thinks about CPP RECIPIENTS.
If an MP thinks they deserve 10% increase, CPP should be linked to it so it’s automatic, not expecting pensioners to beg for a fraction of it, 1% here or there

Once outside interests touch the funds of our Canada pension fund, there is no stopping. Leave it alone. I like the security it allows future generations to still have access. Why not increase pension payouts with the surplus?

Keep the money in the plan. Possibly increase monthly payments to seniors if sustainable.

Absolutely not this is a trust and the trust is doing better leave it because you never know what’s happening in the future and in particular when it comes to health it looks like longevity is coming for many people way beyond what is in the current plan

Some years ago, the feds cancelled a requirement that pension funds could not maintain a surplus of more than 10% of the fund value. Previously they wanted to avoid company pension funds being used for tax avoidance (pension contribution are non taxable). They dropped the limit when Investment returns sank, putting many plans (Teachers, HOOP) into deficit.

Using pension funds for non-pension spending is a guarantee that, in a couple of decades, pension contributions will have to be dramatically increased or benefits reduced |(again, see Teachers & HOOP in the 90s).

The creation of CPPIB ensured spendthrift politicians can’t waste our retirement savings. Lets monitor QPP’s infrastructure spending for a decade before we see 1) how investment returns compare to CPP and 2) how Quebec benefits compare to TROC.

Good god…..with trudeau and his corrupt crew around?…….more 30 billion dollar handouts in Quebec and Ontario while the screws get turned up in the west…..leave the damn pension alone.

Cut cut cut…Lie lie lie. Rinse Repeat…Attack the poorest and attack Lzbour…its what he will do all the while chewing on an apple.

For gods sake don’t let the politicians near the CPP fund.How about an increase for the seniors who paid into the fund all of their working life.

M. Poilievre Would most likely govern in a competent and civil way.

I have always believed that the CPP could provide a much better pension than what it has been paying out.
It is our money and I would rather see a surplus paid out to eligible pensioners than to have it sitting and growing too large. It is also too tempting for the government to use it like a private slush fund; as mentioned, it belongs to the contributors!

The pension funds should be used to increase existing pensions and nothing else. Every dime in the fund was donated by Canadians and it’s for their pensions and nothing else.
The Liberals probably want to spend our pension money on some “green” money pit or give it to some foreign country to enrich corrupt politicians (foreign and domestic)

Hands off the fund. It has more than enough “at the present rates” but more retirees are coming and payouts should increase to cover inflation at a minimum. Leave it alone.

If CPP funds are to be used, it is to go to the people who contributed to that fund.
NO OTHER use of CPP FUNDS IS ACCEPTABLE.
With the rising cost of everything, higher monthly payouts to seniors would be most appropriate.

CPP IS NOT A GOVERNMENT FUND, AND THE GOVERNMENT DOES NOT HAVE ANY RIGHTS TO THE CPP FUNDS.

The money belongs to the people who have paid into it. Our pension money should never be given to politicians who will squander it. If there is a surplus, it should be divided equally and given to the pensioners who have contributed into the fund. So many pensioners are barely getting by. Time to increase the monthly payment to reflect the cost of living

One downside of the CPP is that there is no guaranteed minimum payout other than the $2,500 death benefits. Most workplace pensions have a provision that allows for a minimum of 10 years of pension benefits to be paid to your estate or your designated beneficiary. If you are married and both you and your spouse have full CPP pensions, if you die, your spouse will not receive the survivor benefit because they already get full CPP. If there is a surplus in the fund, CPP should be enhanced to provide a minimum of 10 years of pension benefits in these cases.

The fact that the CPP can adequately fund liabilities until 2090 AND have $300B+ in excess capital is a good news story. I believe the CPP saves many Canadians who don’t adequately save for retirement and while it is a small amount, it is still a forced savings mechanism and a minimum safety net.

However, the CPP’s singular objective is “to maximize investment returns without taking undue risk”. In the midst of economic stagnation, limited business investment, a gargantuan gap in risk capital for entrepreneurs that prevents us from building multi-billion dollar companies, a $100B+ gap in private capital to build housing, etc., I question whether we’ll have a vibrant enough economy for those 2090 pensioners to inhabit.

My contention – we should be taking some portion of EXCESS RETURNS and investing (not giving away) in productive investments that will generate social, economic, and environmental benefits for Canadians rather than endlessly investing in toll bridges in South America and Chinese private equity. Will it earn lower returns? Yes. Can it create extraordinary benefit? Yes.

The CPP and other Canadian pension funds are proud that they don’t have a home bias, meaning they don’t invest anymore in Canada than Canada’s share of global GDP. As a Canadian, that’s not something I’m proud of…

The Hub has made it abundantly clear that we urgently need to make investments that improve productivity in the Canadian economy and right now, government is spending and investing to make that happen while giving the pension sector and private capital a pass. I think it’s time we had a public conversation about it

Increase the amount seniors are getting because of inflation. NOT anywhere else.

I can’t believe the reluctance of some to save or invest today for tomorrow. CPP is a significant element in most Canadians’ retirement plans. I just read this week an article stating that a high number of Canadian’s do not have enough for retirement.
Mark has completely ignored the growth in actuarial liabilities in the time period he quotes nor has he reflected the impact of unusual investment returns and increased inflation on those estimates.
If there is a surplus, its not measured by unexpected growth in assets but by the excess of either current assets over present valued liabilities.
If such a surplus exists, then before adjusting benefits or premiums, the reasons and sustainability of such surplus needs to be assessed. If it is sustainable then you might look at alternatives such as current or future benefits and lastly premiums.
If there is such a surplus, I would look first at how many middle to low income Cdns need more future retirement and look to benefits before the other suggestions.

Increase our payments 20% would be a great help

As an employee making an average Canadian income it never fails to annoy me to see how much CPP $ I have to contribute, knowing that the payout after retirement wouldn’t feed a cat. With inflation raging it seems obvious that a major bump in payments to seniors is in order. With baby boomers flooding this category perhaps this idea will gain some traction politically. Especially as the majority do not have company or government pensions anymore.

I think that the CPP deduction percentage should be reduced as well as increasing pensions.This would benefit almost everyone.

When it comes to so called harm reduction and safer supply there is no science just blind fanatical ideology by its supporters. We have more than enough evidence after a year of decrimialization in BC that these policies are a complete disaster yet they refuse to admit it. Real objective Science died during Covid.

Never use it for anything else. Raise the payout. we are taxed enough to fund all gov. needs. It is time the Government understands fiscal responsibility. Increase the payout for the seniors that are struggling.

an interesting suggestion since the fund is far bigger than needed for the population now and future. More concerning is that many of the investments are in fossil fuels. Divestment from the sector over time would be a great contribution to reducing the increasingly frightening consequences of the changes in the climate on our land and lives

In a democracy the people say what to do with the cpp ,not the goverment

There should be a split between reducing premiums and increasing benefits. 60 to 70% reducing premiums and 30 to 40% increasing benefits.

Decrease CPP premiums. They are robbing the working poor.
These premiums are a saving account, therefore, if our investments are making interest and dividends it should be shared by the people that has contributed.so give us back our deserved returns.
It should not be used for anything else but to give a decent return on our investment.

Given the debt servicing costs after 8 years of Trudeau is $80B, this is not a lot of money

One would be a fool to release spending money in the hands of present bandits.

Yes you should spend it on seniors who need it! That’s what it’s for, not for politicians to blow on stupidity.
With the ridiculous increase in everyday expenses I think any senior should receive the minimum of $35,000 a year, and if they are renting a place, they should be compensated $1,000 a month