Canada’s public service pension plan has $152 billion in liabilities: AG

OTTAWA (NEWS1130) – The spring report from Canada’s Auditor General is revealing some disturbing facts about the country’s public service pension plan and serious issues with overcrowding in our prisons.

The AG has found the federal government’s net liability for the pension plan is $152 billion and there are more long-term risks that need to be addressed.

Not only are the feds facing this massive liability for the taxpayer-funded pension plan, but the government doesn’t have one central department responsible for making sure the plan is sustainable for the long term.

Over the last three years alone, there have been pension fund deficits of $6.5 billion and that number could increase further with interest rates remaining low and people living longer.

A three-year jump in life expectancy could add another $12 billion in liabilities, which could create major problems for taxpayers today and in the future.

The spring report also finds some serious issues with overcrowding in our prisons.

Right now, the number of prisoners exceeds the number of cells — a big part of that is the decline of the number of prisoners getting parole.

While the government is expanding correctional facilities to ease the problem by next year, the AG finds there are no long-term solutions in the works. That means we could face the same problem again in just a few years, creating unsafe facilities and another burden for taxpayers.

In addition to this, the report finds First Nations policing programs and Canadian Northern Economic Development are being poorly managed and Stats Canada had difficulties producing reliable data after the federal government eliminated the long-form census in favour of a voluntary survey in 2011.