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Public Interest Alberta demands pension plan survey results be released

What did 94,000 Albertans say?
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Public Interest Alberta is calling on the UCP government to release Alberta Pension Plan survey results. (File photo by THE CANADIAN PRESS)

Public Interest Alberta says it's time that the UCP government stop hiding the survey results regarding its proposed Alberta Pension Plan.

The survey, which was widely panned for not asking Albertans whether leaving the CPP was a good idea, was open from Sept. 21 to Dec. 10, 2023.

The holdup, and the denial of Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy (FOIP) requests for the results by media outlets, has pushed Public Interest Alberta (PIA) to call for an expedited investigation by the Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner into the delay.

PIA executive director Bradley Lafortune said Albertans want to know what 94,000 of them had to say, specifically to the open-ended questions asking for feedback on the proposed plan.

“As Albertans face an ongoing cost-of-living crisis, playing political games with their retirement security is absurd," Lafortune said.

A report commissioned for the UCP government, released last September, says a stand-alone pension plan can deliver higher benefits and lower contributions based on a calculation that suggests the province deserves half the CPP's $575 billion in assets. Others put Alberta’s share much lower.

In December, the province paused consultations until the Office of the Chief Actuary of Canada provides assets transfer figures.

Justin Brattinga, senior press secretary for Finance Minister Nate Horner, said the government is waiting for the actuary report.

"Once we have received their report we will determine next steps. Until that point, we are continuing to receive pension plan workbooks from Albertans and gathering feedback, which will inform a 'what we heard' report. Until we are done collecting feedback, we will not release the results," Brattinga said. 

Workbooks can be submitted until August 28, according to the government's website.

Lafortune said the delay is unacceptable. 

"The timing of the federal government's release of the new actuary report has no bearing on the legal requirements under the FOIP Act. Release the results, it's as simple as that," Lafortune said. 

Public Interest Alberta says it will continue its campaign to inform Albertans about the choice between the CPP and the proposed APP with fact sheets from pension experts and town hall meetings across the province.

— with files from The Canadian Press



Susan Zielinski

About the Author: Susan Zielinski

Susan has been with the Red Deer Advocate since 2001. Her reporting has focused on education, social and health issues.
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