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Home My WebLink AboutClinton News-Record, 1978-09-14, Page 4PAQE 4—CLINTON N Jack's jottings from Queen's Park BY JACK RIDDELL, M.P.P. My colleagues and I, in the Liberal Party, are committed to free en- terprise and to ensuring a strong corporate sector in the years ahead, at the same time protecting the futures of the people who work within our free„ enterprise economy. In this connection, we are very concerned about the situation with respect to pension plans in Canada. Stuart Smith has compared the financial status of these. plans to a ticking timebomb, the eventual explosion of which would have devastating effects for corporations, govern- ments and hundreds of thousands of pensioners. Indications are that the Canada Pension Plan and many private plans are in danger of going broke, because the level of benefits paid but has been allowed to rise much faster than the level of contributions. Even two years ago, a survey of some 100 Canadian corporations revealed unfunded pension liabilities of $930 million. Rapidly escalating salaries in the last decade have sharply increased the debts of most pension plans, which calculate benefits on a percentage of an employee's top earning years or career average earnings. Claims on pension plans are now far greater •than most actuaries predicted when contribution schedules were established. Unless pension plan financial imbalances are resolved quickly, hundreds of thousands of _ working Canadians will not be able to collect a cent from pension plans to which they have contributed. For the Canada Pen- sion Plan, the break-even point will be reached in five years - 1983. At that point, the plan will be paying out more in current benefits than is received in premiums. The surpluses of past years will be exhausted by the end of the century, approximately, and unless contributions are greatly increased before that time, the Canada Pension Plan will go broke. To quote Canadian Business magazine, "The mounting deficits are staggering. Canada's provinces at present owe their civil service pension plans a total of $10 billion, and, in addition, they are in 1,debt to the Canada Pension Plan by more than $12 billion... As for the private plans, whose combined assets total about $24 billion, in- credibly, no one has yet done a comprehensive check on how far short they are of being able to pay the benefits they're committed to pay." Problems are com- pounded by the fact that the number of elderly people in Canada will double in the next 13 years. That same post- war "baby boom", which has moved like a tidal wave through our school System is now entering the workforce: inevitably, it will have an impact on the pension plans, as the post-war "babies" become senior citizens, and fewer and fewer workers support more and more pen- sioners. Lowering the mandatory age of retirement from the present 65 would create further difficulties. The impending pension crisis will also have an effect upon business and government. Companies are obliged to make up any shortfall in their private pension plans, and the liability can be enormous, Of Canadian companies surveyed by the Financial Executives Institute, nearly 20 per cent otthose with pension. Tara wow, 5. S -RECORD, THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 14,1978 Real Value! Assorted Flavours ETON CLUB BEVERAGES Case of 24, 10 fl -oz tins Our Reg. Price 2.05 All prices shown in this ad guaranteed effective through Saturday, September 16th, 1978 at the A&P Stores listed in this ad only. Loto Canada, Provincial & Wintario Tickets Available At A&P Food Stores! PREPARE YOUR CAR FOR WINTER NOW AND SAVE • AT MP! Our Regular Price 4.99 — SAVE 1.00 ANTI -FREEZE 1 -gallon ctnr 10w30 Limit 2 per customer with a minimum 10.00 purchase excluding cigarettecand this product. ELL MOTOR quart 77? 3 Star (good to 36 dgr.�s b.Iow) WINDSHIELD WASHER ANTI -FREEZE 1 -gallon container SAVE 59c et. Fresh for flavour! No. 1 Grade, California, Sweet, Thompson Seedless — Red Queen or Black Ribier lb SUNKIST ORANGES Sweet, Valenda, Lunch Box Favourite dozen No. 1 °sof, ONTARIO, SWEET, JUICY HANGING BASKETS, ASSORTED' Bartlett Pears ib4951 Tropical NO. 1 GUDE, MAIM WAXED Rutabagas - 1b12? pot NO. 1 GRADE, IMPORTED, SWEET Onions Spanish Type IMPORTED, LARGE, ECONOMY PACKAGE Radishes , r Ago( 2695?! 16 -oz pkg 4 Our Reg. Price 5.99 "TRUCKLOAD Cut from Canada • BEEF ROASTS Bone -In Blade Roast Bone -In Pot Shoulder Roast Save 301i per Ib Our Reg. Price lb 1.28 Ib 'jtfr�manadaa Grade "A" Beef, accellent for Braising Our Reg. LADE STEAKS Price 1.48- SAVE 50c Ib 11698 We pick the best meats. So you can, too! • i MAPLE LEAF, SLICED, REGULAR, ALL BEEF, GARLIC, THICK SLICED mom Bologna 16-ozvacpac1.28 HaddockFillets b1.69 KWICK KRISP BRAND, SLICED • TOWN CLUB, FROZEN 2-L3 MOS Side Bacon 1 -lb vac pac 1.58 Hamburg Pates 2.48 SCHNEIDERS, FROZEN, STEAK OR BLUEWAIER FROZEN 10.01 PKG Beef Pies 14,,zpkg1.48 Shrimps & Cts 1.58 SAVE 2& Squirrel PEANUT BUTTER jar 1.99 Our Reg. Price 2.19 White, Yellow, Blue, Green, Orange KLEENEX TOWELS pkg of 2 rolls Action Priced! FARM NOUSE, FROZEN, BANANA CHOCOLATE, COCONUT, LEMON Cream Pies Aquafresh NIARGA*INE Blue Bonnet 3lbpkg2.19 ACTION PRICED! 12 -oz pie 79? ACTION PRICED! 100 mi tube 99? SEALTESY, REGULAR CREAMED ACTION PRICEDI 1 kg C111 Cottage Cheese 1.59 Real Value! Capri LUNCHEON MEAT LOAF 111 CAO Beef, Irish, Turkey -Chicken, CLARK STEWS 24f1 -oz tin Action Pricedl A8 11 oz. pkg. SNP ACK CRACKERS69? FROZEN YOGURT ACTION PR10EDI PKG OP Borden Frogurt9 NAEISCO CEREAL A% Shreddies 675g099? BATHROOM TISSUE WHITE, PINK, YELLOW Delsey Tissue ACTION paws pxo OF 2 ROLLS 59ge •