From: John StapletonTo: Retirement policy watchersDate: January 9, 2026Re: Reforming Old Age Security Without Generational Conflict The frustration animating calls to reform Old Age Security (OAS) is understandable. Younger Canadians face a housing market that feels rigged, tuition costs that have outpaced wages, and child-rearing expenses that strain family budgets. On the facts, the generational […]
From: Shannan Corey and Colin BusbyTo: Pension watchersDate: December 15, 2025Re: Portable, Pooled, and Pension-Like: Evaluating Options for Canada’s Uncovered Workers A growing share of Canadian workers lack access to employer-sponsored pension plans, and the traditional model of workplace-based retirement savings is under increasing strain. Only about 40 percent of workers belong to an employer […]
From: Keith AmbachtsheerTo: Canadian pension observersDate: December 11, 2025Re: What Gets Measured Gets Results: Key Priorities for Canada’s Retirement System Canada’s position in the 2025 Mercer CFA Institute Global Pension Index rankings highlights both strengths and clear areas for improvement. Canada gets a grade of B, ahead of countries like the United States, but lags […]
From: John StapletonTo: Anti-poverty watchers Date: November 24, 2025Re: How to Talk About Longevity With Retirees When I talk with low-income retirees, one theme comes up over and over: People want certainty. They want to know how much money they’ll have for the rest of their lives – not a guess, not a maybe – a […]
by Pierre-Carl Michaud and Bernard Morency Canadians are managing more money and more financial decisions than ever. Over the past 30 years, household wealth has more than doubled, while traditional supports like workplace pensions have faded. With fewer defined benefit plans and limited growth in public retirement benefits, people have to make more choices on […]
November 11, 2025 – Earlier generations of retirees fared well despite limited financial literacy thanks to simpler pension systems. But what used to be a relatively simple flight plan has turned into a far more complicated journey for today’s Canadians, who face a self-directed financial landscape, according to a new report by the C.D. Howe […]
November 3, 2025 – For some parents and seniors, taking a second income, working more or drawing extra pension income can mean losing most of every extra dollar of income to taxes and benefit clawbacks. This can significantly weaken incentives to work or save, according to a C.D. Howe Institute report. In “The Clawback Trap: […]
The Clawback Trap: How Canada’s Benefit System Can Undermine Work and Saving by Alexandre Laurin and Nicholas Dahir Clawbacks of government benefits can create high marginal effective tax rates (METRs) on extra income, or high participation tax rates (PTRs) on prospective income from taking on a job, that have a negative impact on work incentives […]
From: William B.P. Robson and Alexandre LaurinTo: The Honourable François-Philippe Champagne, Minister of FinanceDate: October 29, 2025Re: Deliver on RRIF Withdrawal Promises – and Fix the Underlying Problem Back in April, the federal government said it would reduce mandatory withdrawals from Registered Retirement Income Funds (RRIFs) by 25 percent for 2025. The idea was that RRIF […]
Reduced access to financial advice is closely linked to lower participation in tax-advantaged savings and investment programs. This is largely due to limited financial literacy and behavioural inertia – barriers that financial advisors are uniquely positioned to help Canadians overcome. Limited financial participation at the individual household level has broader economic consequences: lower household financial […]
From: Kathryn BushTo: Pension observersDate: July 18, 2025Re: How a Pension Dashboard Would Ease Retirement Financial Fog Most Canadians have an array of income sources in retirement; government entitlements, retirement savings, annuities, and a trail of other sources from a lifetime of work. In addition, with fewer Canadians having defined benefit pension plans, more Canadians […]
July 8, 2025 – Most Canadians fear they will run out of money in retirement, and this fear is made worse by the shift to defined-contribution savings and by having accounts often scattered across multiple institutions. A national pension dashboard would greatly improve Canadians’ ability to plan for retirement, according to a new report from the C.D. […]
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From: John StapletonTo: Retirement policy watchersDate: January 9, 2026Re: Reforming Old Age Security Without Generational Conflict The frustration animating calls to reform Old Age Security (OAS) is understandable. Younger Canadians face a housing market that feels rigged, tuition costs that have outpaced wages, and child-rearing expenses that strain family budgets. On the facts, the generational […] 
From: Shannan Corey and Colin BusbyTo: Pension watchersDate: December 15, 2025Re: Portable, Pooled, and Pension-Like: Evaluating Options for Canada’s Uncovered Workers A growing share of Canadian workers lack access to employer-sponsored pension plans, and the traditional model of workplace-based retirement savings is under increasing strain. Only about 40 percent of workers belong to an employer […] 
From: Keith AmbachtsheerTo: Canadian pension observersDate: December 11, 2025Re: What Gets Measured Gets Results: Key Priorities for Canada’s Retirement System Canada’s position in the 2025 Mercer CFA Institute Global Pension Index rankings highlights both strengths and clear areas for improvement. Canada gets a grade of B, ahead of countries like the United States, but lags […] 
From: John StapletonTo: Anti-poverty watchers Date: November 24, 2025Re: How to Talk About Longevity With Retirees When I talk with low-income retirees, one theme comes up over and over: People want certainty. They want to know how much money they’ll have for the rest of their lives – not a guess, not a maybe – a […] 
by Pierre-Carl Michaud and Bernard Morency Canadians are managing more money and more financial decisions than ever. Over the past 30 years, household wealth has more than doubled, while traditional supports like workplace pensions have faded. With fewer defined benefit plans and limited growth in public retirement benefits, people have to make more choices on […] 
November 3, 2025 – For some parents and seniors, taking a second income, working more or drawing extra pension income can mean losing most of every extra dollar of income to taxes and benefit clawbacks. This can significantly weaken incentives to work or save, according to a C.D. Howe Institute report. In “The Clawback Trap: […] 
From: William B.P. Robson and Alexandre LaurinTo: The Honourable François-Philippe Champagne, Minister of FinanceDate: October 29, 2025Re: Deliver on RRIF Withdrawal Promises – and Fix the Underlying Problem Back in April, the federal government said it would reduce mandatory withdrawals from Registered Retirement Income Funds (RRIFs) by 25 percent for 2025. The idea was that RRIF […] 
Reduced access to financial advice is closely linked to lower participation in tax-advantaged savings and investment programs. This is largely due to limited financial literacy and behavioural inertia – barriers that financial advisors are uniquely positioned to help Canadians overcome. Limited financial participation at the individual household level has broader economic consequences: lower household financial […] 
From: Kathryn BushTo: Pension observersDate: July 18, 2025Re: How a Pension Dashboard Would Ease Retirement Financial Fog Most Canadians have an array of income sources in retirement; government entitlements, retirement savings, annuities, and a trail of other sources from a lifetime of work. In addition, with fewer Canadians having defined benefit pension plans, more Canadians […] 
July 8, 2025 – Most Canadians fear they will run out of money in retirement, and this fear is made worse by the shift to defined-contribution savings and by having accounts often scattered across multiple institutions. A national pension dashboard would greatly improve Canadians’ ability to plan for retirement, according to a new report from the C.D. […]