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Crazy MP retirement packages
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| EvilTree |
http://www.canada.com/national/feat...f3-90e0298a4e20
| quote: | Turfed MPs reap healthy taxpayer funded pensions
Terry Pedwell
Canadian Press
Tuesday, January 24, 2006
CREDIT: CP PHOTO/Fred Chartrand
Glengarry-Prescott-Russell Liberal M.P. Don Boudria hugs his wife Mary Ann. Boudria did not run in this year's election.
OTTAWA -- Taxpayers needn't shed a tear for members of Parliament who were defeated in Monday's federal election or left politics before the vote: they stand to collect $74.6 million in pensions and severance.
Four of the 67 retiring MPs could each collect more than $3 million before they turn 75, estimates calculated by the Canadian Taxpayers Federation suggest.
"Defeated and retiring members will win financially thanks to a gold-plated pension plan and rich severance payments for parliamentarians,'' said federation director John Williamson.
"Shed no tears for retiring or defeated MPs. They are being well looked after by Canadian taxpayers.''
The bigal pension recipients include Liberals Ethel Blondin-Andrew, at $137,820, and Don Boudria, at $135,906. Outgoing Deputy Prime Minister Anne McLellan is set to receive more than $100,000 annually.
Blondin-Andrew would collect the most of any MP if she lives to 75, with her pension and severance package estimated to total $3,797,929.
Two MPs, Independent Bev Desjarlais and Odina Desrochers of the Bloc Quebecois, will collect the smallest pensions, each receiving just over $40,000 annually.
Exact pension and severance figures are kept secret by the federal government under the Privacy Act. However, the formula for making the calculations is publicly available.
The basic formula is far from basic. It's based on how many years an MP was in office before departing, multiplied by compounding interest rates that differ from one term to another, and multiplied again by annual salary, averaged over the five-year period during which the MP earned the most.
It's complicated further by changes enacted in 2001 to how an MP's base salary is calculated.
Prior to that year, MPs earned a base of $68,200, but also collected tax-free allowances of $22,500.
But that changed in 2001, when members were required to pay tax on their full salary, which was increased to $131,400 annually.
"Prior to those reforms, the tax-free allowance wasn't included in the pension calculation,'' explained Williamson.
"So when they did away with that allowance, and put it on the salary . . . the appearance was a lower calculation because of the inclusion of the formerly tax-free portion.''
Nonetheless, today's pension amounts are still ``up in the stratosphere and completely out of line with public expectations,'' he said.
The federation is calling on Ottawa to convert MP pensions to a dollar-for-dollar contribution plan, and has already successfully lobbied for similar changes in British Columbia, Alberta, Manitoba and even Ontario.
Saskatchewan had a similar plan in place before the federation began its lobbying effort.
Despite Conservative promises to cut taxes and tackle corruption in Ottawa, a new Tory government won't likely make any dramatic changes to the MP pension system, Williamson said.
"If this new government wanted to show it has a common touch and is in tune with middle-class values, there would be a wholesale review of salaries that are paid to federal lawmakers and, of course, the perks that go along with the position.'' |
wow |
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| malek |
bah thats part of the deal, but whats worse is defeated deputies bringing home computer equipments such as monitors/printers/computer, etc...
thats criminal. |
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| d!abolic |
| That's not a lot of money. Considering that only FOUR out of nearly EIGHTY are getting over 100k/year. Most are probably getting 70 or 80, which isn't a lot of money to live on when you're getting old and the medical bills begin piling up. |
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| MarkT |
haha...the 2nd last line is what I love the most.
I don't care who is in power, minority or marjority...that MPs will ever agree to substantially lessen their compensation packages will likely never happen.
having said that...I think MPs deserve to make a load of money (if they work hard for it)...we do need and want to attract top "talent" and have to compete with compensation packages in the private sector (why be an MP when you're a doctor, lawyer, professor, etc)...but I don't know about some of those crazy pensions. |
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| rabbitjoker |
| You get what you pay for. |
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