Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland says 鈥減rotecting the pensions of all Canadians鈥� is a federal government priority ahead of convening a meeting Friday with her provincial and territorial counterparts to discuss Alberta potentially pulling out of the Canada Pension Plan.
Alberta鈥檚 UCP has been mulling the idea of leaving the CPP and forming its own pension plan since 2020, with Premier Danielle Smith taking next steps to do so in recent months.
Now, Freeland is set to end her week with an 11 a.m. EDT virtual meeting with provincial and territorial finance ministers to discuss the "serious concerns" some provinces have raised.
On Tuesday, Freeland's office made public a letter she sent to her counterparts, stating in part that she鈥檚 heard from Canadians, including Albertans, about plans to withdraw from the fund.
鈥淔or six decades, the CPP has been the bedrock of a secure and dignified retirement for Canadians, very much including the people of Alberta,鈥� Freeland said at a press conference Tuesday.
鈥淭he Alberta Federation of Labour has said that the proposed move to a provincial pension plan would be, quote, 鈥榯ruly scary for anyone contemplating a safe and stable retirement鈥�,鈥� she added. 鈥淧rotecting the pensions of all Canadians is a priority for our government, and I look forward to an important conversation about this with my counterparts from across the country on Friday.鈥�
According to the Canada Pension Plan Act, a province wishing to withdraw must negotiate with the federal government and come to an agreement on how to do so.
An analysis from LifeWorks, on which the Alberta government is basing its cost-benefit calculations for a possible Alberta Pension Plan, estimates the western province would be entitled to $334 billion if it were to leave the CPP in 2027, which is more than half the total amount in the $570 billion federal fund.
Freeland, in her open letter to the provincial and territorial finance ministers, called Alberta鈥檚 plan a 鈥渢hreat鈥� to Canadians鈥� and Albertans鈥� pensions, which she called "the bedrock of a secure and dignified retirement."
鈥淎lberta has the right to withdraw from the CPP should it so choose,鈥� she wrote. 鈥淏ut that choice should be informed by a clear understanding of the risks posed by leaving the CPP鈥攊ncluding of those stemming from the Government of Alberta鈥檚 flawed analysis of the share of CPP assets to which the government claims Alberta would be entitled.鈥�
Freeland added she plans to 鈥渟pecifically speak to the flaws鈥� of Alberta鈥檚 exit plan during Friday鈥檚 meeting, calling a possible outcome of LifeWorks鈥� calculations 鈥渦ntenable and absurd.鈥�
The province has tapped a former Alberta treasurer to lead a panel to gather feedback from Albertans on the move to leave the CPP, and the team has been carrying out telephone town halls and conducting a survey on the provincial government鈥檚 website to gauge opinions.
The province鈥檚 lead on the file, Finance Minister Nate Horner, said on CTV鈥檚 Question Period on Sunday that the province鈥檚 decision on whether or not to hold a referendum on leaving the CPP will be based on 鈥渉igh level feelings from many sources鈥� following consultations with Albertans.
Following up the next day, Premier Smith 鈥� in response to a question about an objective metric the province is using to decide whether to go to a referendum based on consultations with Albertans 鈥� said that 鈥渢he most important thing is getting a firm number.鈥�
鈥淲hat I've heard is that Albertans want to see a solid number, and so do we,鈥� she said. 鈥淪o we've asked the federal government, if they don't like our calculation, and they think we've misinterpreted the act, to tell us what they think the number is.鈥�
鈥淪o once we get that number, then we'll have a better idea of whether Albertans want to go to a referendum on the basis of the calls we received to MLA offices, the survey results, consultations ... polling, all of that.鈥�
