Hasty elections: The pensions of 142 federal aides are at stake

No one talks about it, but everyone thinks about itThe Conservative MP elected in 2015 preferred to remain anonymous.

According to the law on retirement allowance for Members of Parliament, these are paid to members who have contributed to the plan for at least six years.

However, on October 19, 2015, 142 deputies were elected for the first time. Defeat in a poll by October 19, 2021 will deprive them of a deputy pension plan.

This is, at least, a retirement allowance of just over 000 32,000 per year from the age of 65, which slips through their fingers. This amount is indexed and becomes more generous depending on the additional years of service.

At present, the basic salary of a Member of Parliament is 800 185,800 per annum. Ministers and parliamentary secretaries, in particular, receive more generous salaries and allowances.

According to our calculations, more than half of the Liberal Party of Canada Caucasus (92 MPs, including 23 ministers) are in this position. For the most part there are ministers like Diane LeBoutier and Jean-Yves Duclos who can face tough races in their contests with the fall election. The retirement allowances of 31 Conservative MPs, 9 Bloc members and 7 New Democrats are also at risk.

This is the least of my worries, I do not care. This is not really one of my concerns, Elected Black Gabriel Ste-Marie Member, elected in October 2015 and having nearly six years of service. If the elected officer is for salary and pension, he is not really there for the right reasons, He crumbles.

We did not show up for the pensionNDP MP Daniel Blake joins.

However, behind the scenes, an elected official said the question might encourage some of his colleagues to postpone their retirement as they wanted to take it at the end of their mandate. For older MPs, it affects their decision on whether or not to implement, Explains the federal deputy who prefers not to be named because of the sensitive nature of the question.

Prohibited item

Genevieve Tellier, a professor of political studies at the University of Ottawa, understands that it is not convenient for members of parliament to address this issue openly. This is a bit taboo, the whole question of the salary of elected officials, She insists.

This provokes fears from elected officials because there is an opinion that they have good salaries, so we do not want to show it too much in the public sphere., She says.

In his view, there is no doubt that the concerned elected officials are thinking about it. I believe members of parliament are human beings like everyone else. Like you, compensation like mine is also important. It takes us a job, a salary, a pension, She explains.

A member who has not reached his six years of service receives the same amount as the retirement allowance, thereby returning his contributions with interest.

A factor to motivate the election campaign?

Much of Justin Trudeau’s Caucasus is concerned with this retirement issue. Can it affect the Prime Minister and the date chosen to call the election?

The financial considerations of individual MPs should never be taken into account in the decision to hold elections, NDP MP Daniel Blake recalled.

According to Genevieve Tellier, it does not weigh heavily in balance. Strategists near the PM’s office think more about the party’s good and now, [vont se demander] Is it possible to get a majority? She mentioned.

Justin Trudeau’s team also knew that the municipal elections in Quebec would take place on November 7 and that it would not be too late to dissolve parliament.

When will the elections take place?

On Tuesday, federal aides, almost unanimously, called for the poll to be stopped during the epidemic.

However, for the Trudeau government, it was not easy to determine what entry would mark the end of the health crisis.

Behind the scenes, liberal strategists suggest that the first window could be opened to start the election campaign with a poll from mid-August to the end of September. This scenario can be implemented If the epidemiological situation is going well and the opposition parties make Parliament inoperable, Says a generous source.

If the fall window is not in favor, Justin Trudeau may be tempted to wait until the next federal budget in 2022.

In this case, there will be a guaranteed pension for 142 additional assistants.