Ontario's associate minister of finance is responding to Huron Bruce MPP Lisa Thompson's concerns about the Ontario Retirement Pension Plan.
Mitzie Hunter says the government is committed to improving retirement security for Ontarians.
Hunter disputes Thompson's claims that the plan will lead to job losses, saying instead that the ecomony is projected to continue to grow and create jobs.
She adds that the conference board finds the short term impact of introducing the plan modest, and largely offset by reductions in employment insurance and Workplace Safety and Insurance Board premiums. Plus contributions to the plan are tax deductible.
She says contrary to claims from Huron Bruce's MPP, the plan is expected to add billions to the economy in the long term as future retirees will have more disposable income to spend. Hunter says the pension plan is cost effective way to help people save for the future.
Hunter quotes the conference board as saying, "Consumers and the economy as a whole are better off under the ORPP."
She says the government will move forward with the plan because they believe Ontarians deserve to retire with dignity.
