Most Canadians support boosting Old Age Security (OAS) benefits by 10 per cent for seniors aged 65 to 74, according to a new Nanos Research poll conducted for CTV News.
The poll says more than 3 in 4 Canadians support or somewhat support the increase, with support strong across the country, across gender and age groups.
The push to increase OAS is one of two key demands from the Bloc Québécois to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's minority Liberal government. Bloc leader Yves-François Blanchet has given the government until Oct. 29 to help enact a pair of private members’ bills – one of which proposes a 10 per cent increase to OAS for seniors ages 65 to 74 – or risk an election before the new year.
Earlier this week, the Bloc used its one opposition day of the fall sitting to present a non-binding motion on its OAS bill that asked for the government to "take the necessary steps to ensure that a royal recommendation is granted as soon as possible.”
On Wednesday, the motion passed by a vote of 181 to 143, with most Liberal MPs voting against it. The vote is non-binding, which means it’s largely symbolic and the federal government does not have to act on it.
After the vote, Blanchet said if the Liberals think they'll get any more time on its ultimatum, they should think again(opens in a new tab).
"They have until a few days from now to go on with the royal recommendation. And if they do not, we will start as rapidly as next week to speak with other opposition parties in order to get ready to go into an election," Blanchet said.
In an interview on CTV Power Play on Wednesday, Government House Leader Karina Gould wouldn’t rule out that the Liberals are still trying to find a path forward with the Bloc.
"I don't negotiate in public, and I don't talk about those conversations, but I can say, and I think our government has demonstrated that when it comes to good ideas to support Canadians… We are there for Canadians," she said. "We are open to good ideas."
However, prior to the vote, the Liberals expressed concerns about the cost of a potential program expansion.
In an interview with CTV’s Power Play last week, Parliamentary Budget Officer Yves Giroux said it may be “a bit tricky” for the federal government to meet its fiscal anchors if it acquiesces to the Bloc’s demand to expand the OAS. Giroux calculates that demand would come with an annual price tag of more than $3 billion, with a total cost of $16.1 billion over five years.
Last year, Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland pledged new fiscal guardrails aimed at limiting spending and deficits.
Methodology
The Nanos Research poll randomly surveyed 1,058 Canadians aged 18 years or older between Sept. 29 and Oct. 2. Nanos conducted an RDD dual frame (land- and cell-lines) hybrid telephone and online random survey. The margin of error for this survey is 3.0 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.
Now, I'm not going to get into the politics of boosting Old Age Security except to say the Bloc found a great issue to stick it to the Liberals.
Quebec's demographics are older than the rest of Canada so obviously this is a great political issue for them to pander right before the next elections.
But notice here the Nanos survey is across Canada and most Canadians are in favour of an increase in OAS benefits.
This is a critical point, one I've been discussing over the years, the looming retirement crisis plaguing most of the population that has no access to a well-governed defined-benefit plan.
Sure, everyone contributes to the CPP and enhanced CPP will help future generations retire a little more comfortably but who is helping retired people now?
In comes Bloc leader Yves-François Blanchet who has given the government until Oct. 29 to help enact a pair of private members’ bills – one of which proposes a 10% increase to OAS for seniors ages 65 to 74 – or risk an election before the new year.
Coming off the worst inflation episode since the 1970s, this is music to the ears of cashed- strapped seniors living on a fixed income.
Is it a smart policy? While Trevor Tombe thinks boosting OAS would be a costly mistake, it really depends for who. Most people who need it would beg to differ with his logic.
But Parliamentary Budget Officer Yves Giroux said it may be “a bit tricky” for the federal government to meet its fiscal anchors if it acquiesces to the Bloc’s demand to expand the OAS.
Giroux calculates that demand would come with an annual price tag of more than $3 billion, with a total cost of $16.1 billion over five years.
The truth is the Liberals have wasted a lot of money over the last four years, some programs were needed to address the pandemic but others were pure pork spending.
And they are still dithering on boosting the Canada Disability Benefit even though that law was unanimously passed to lift Canadians with disabilities out of poverty.
Anyway, I am bringing this survey to everyone's attention because clearly Canadians are increasingly worried about retirement and many wonder how they're going to make ends meet.
The message to all our politicians who enjoy a well-governed defined-benefit plan is clear: boosting pension benefits isn't an issue for tomorrow, Canadians want policies to address it now.
Below, CTV's Rachel Aiello explains how the Liberals voted against a Bloc motion which still passed – and how it could put that relationship in peril.