What’s been said about the CPP deal between Ottawa and some provinces

OTTAWA – A selection of what was being said Tuesday about the changes to the Canada Pension Plan agreed to by the federal government and most of the provinces and territories:

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“Quite frankly, I was a thorn in the side of many of my colleagues … I kept bringing this up. I kept making it clear that we were moving ahead, and I kept making it clear that we all knew that there was a national problem.” — Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne, whose plan to go it alone on its own pension plan is widely believed to have forced the issue.

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“From the earliest discussions, Saskatchewan has voiced concerns about CPP changes adding costs to job creators and taking more from employee paycheques, especially at a time when our resource sector is facing significant challenges…. Saskatchewan had a choice to make the CPP changes better by going slower with an extended implementation period, or sitting it out and risking that a more aggressive plan like the province of Ontario’s would be implemented nationally.” — From Saskatchewan Premier Brad Wall’s Facebook page.

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“Our goal now moves to torpedoing the deal. We’ve got the opportunity before this becomes a full agreement … and we’ll certainly be taking aim at some of the provinces that suggested that they were lukewarm or perhaps opposed to CPP expansion. B.C. and Saskatchewan are pretty big surprises. The big question I ask myself is, ‘What was the size of the federal cheques that were written to some of these provinces to get them to the table?'” — Dan Kelly, president of the Canadian Federation of Independent Business.

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“I think we played a constructive role knowing full well that, had we not gone along with it, something would have been imposed upon us that maybe was less palatable.” — Saskatchewan Finance Minister Kevin Doherty.

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“What’s it going to cost Canadians and why weren’t Canadians consulted? It is a huge impact on Canadians in terms of the cost, money coming off their paycheques. It’s another tax, so there is a big concern that there wasn’t any kind of a discussion about what it will cost Canadians, so we’ll have to wait and see. We still don’t know, the government actually hasn’t shared the cost of this.” — Interim Conservative leader Rona Ambrose.

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“I want to make sure that all Canadians understand that their management of their discretionary incomes, and their willingness to set aside today’s spending for tomorrow’s investments in their own future, is the key way that they’re going to secure their financial future.” — Manitoba Premier Brian Pallister.

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“This is yet another betrayal of Canada’s middle class. Canadian families cannot trust the Liberals to make decisions that put more money back in their pockets. If the Liberal government cannot keep promises they made only six months ago, how can families trust what the Liberals are promising 35 years from now?” — Conservative finance critic Lisa Raitt.

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