national Citizen Wednesday. June 6. 1984 — 5 71 PER CENT OF SALARY? More needed for CPP OTTAWA (CP) — Canadians will eventually have to pay more into the Canada Pension Plan than previously expected because they are having fewer babies, living longer and enjoying less after-inflation growth in their incomes, says a report tabled in the Commons on Tuesday. At present, CPP contributions amount to 3.6 per cent of an employee’s salary, half of which is paid by the employer and half by the employee. The report estimates that contributions will eventually have to rise to just under 11 per cent from the 3.6 per cent, two percentage points higher than previously projected. The actuarial report, prepared by the federal Department of Insurance, projects that the pension plan will face its first “critical” year in 1985, will begin to shrink in 1993 and will be exhausted by 2005 unless contributions increase. The report will provide the statistical basis for federal-provincial negotiations on changes to the 18-year-old CPP that could begin later this year. Changes require consent of two-thirds of the provinces with two-thirds of the population. The report says CPP benefits and expenses will exceed contributions next year and the provinces will have to begin paying interest on money they have borrowed from the fund. Those interest payments, along with contributions. will keep the fund growing from $31.3 billion at the end of 1985 to $45 billion in 1992. But in 1993 the fund will begin to shrink and, with the present level of contributions and no change in the benefits offered, the plan would be exhausted by 2005. Those dates are only slightly different from the previous critical dates set for the plan. For several years the provinces have been seeking to have the financing of the plan.renegotiated. The provinces agreed in 1982 that contributions should be increased by 0.2 percentage points a year until the “pay-as-you-go” or ‘long-term” contribution rate is reached. At that time the pay-as-you-go rate was projected at about nine per cent.. But with fewer people being born and people living longer, the drain on the CPP is expected to be greater than previously projected. Further, since CPP benefits increase with the rate of inflation and if after-inflation earnings are less than earlier expected, it means the increase in contributions that are tied to salary will not rise as fast as payouts, which grow with inflation. While it has been known for some time that the contribtution rate should be increased, there is no agreement yet on when contributions should be increased and at what rate. The report also states that the “unfunded liability” of the plan — the shortfall that would occur if the plan were folded and everyone were paid what they were owed — was $208 billion at the end of last year. Employer plans unprotected by Canadian Press Some 4.5 million workers finally appear to have a good chance of getting more from their employer-sponsored pension plans, but many of them may have to do without guaranteed protection against inflation. Provincial ministers responsible for pension reform reached an agreement in principle in Toronto on Tuesday that sets the stage for improvements next year affecting 34 million plan members. Meanwhile, in Ottawa, Finance Minister Marc Lalonde introduced draft legislation in the Commons to do much the same for one million plan members under federal jurisdiction. The two separate initiatives are roughly similar except in the area of inflation protection. Ottawa wants all employer pension plans partly “indexed” to the cost of living. Ontario is the only province now prepared to follow suit. Together, the pension reforms envisioned by the two levels of government would provide additional benefits to virtually half the paid labor force who are now enrolled in employer plans. People who change jobs frequently would get special protection from proposals to make pensions “portable.” Women would be among the main winners from guarantees of survivor’s benefits and proposals to split pension entitlements equally between spouses when marriages break down. The federal government estimates that its reform package could raise incomes from employer-sponsored plans by 15 to 20 per cent in the long run. The benefits would be financed largely by increased contributions equal to 1.1 to 1.5 per cent of payroll. Presumably, the provincial package would be less expensive if it had no inflation protection through indexing. At the Toronto meeting, the provincial ministers agreed on a host of improvements — subject to the approval of their cabinet colleagues: • • Employer-sponsored plans should provide survivor’s benefits eaual to at least 60 per cent of the benefits earned by a plan member. • Pension credits or entitlements to future pensions should be split between husbands and wives when their marriages break down. • Pensions should be portable so workers don't lose benefits when they change jobs. One way of doing this would be to transfer the funds earned to a special kind of savings account that couldn't be cashed in until retirement. • Pensions should be “vested” and “locked in” after five years of service with an employer. Workers would thereby be guaranteed future benefits in full, but normally only upon retirement. • Employers should pav a fair share — probably at least half — of all pension benefits. • Full-time and part-time workers should have the option of joining their employers’ Elans after five years on the job, but shouldn’t e forced by governments to join. The federal proposals are similar, except they provide for inflation protection and vesting after two years. They also would require most workers to join plans sponsored by employers rather than making membership voluntary. The issue of inflation protection proved to be the only real stumbling block facing the provinces. Ontario Treasurer Larry Grossman, who organized Tuesday’s meeting, said he is ready to proceed on his own even if other provinces don’t follow suit. “We may not all have inflation protection,” he told reporters “I don't consider that fatal.” Ontario has an estimated 1.8 million members of pension plans under its jurisdiction, and Ottawa another one million. That is a total of 2.8 million or well over half the number of plan members in Canada. The indexing formula proposed by the two governments is 60 per cent of the increase in the consumer price index each year with a maximum annual indexing of eight per cent. Most provinces worry that the long-term costs of indexing could make some employers less apt to start or maintain plans. “We want to investigate that much further and much deeper." said Saskatchewan Labor Minister Lome McLaren "We felt that right at the present time we wouldn't want to deter the development of private pension plans." Most pension experts believe legislation should be nearly uniform across Canada to make it easier to administer. Grossman said he is not overly worried about any differences due to inflation protection assuming other parts of the package are similar. A Bank rate interest rates 1 his wiMl m /j 11.54 f guru effective 1 Mortgages fConst/nerj S a» ngs Term deposits on June 4 1 year C 1 D*u> Bonus 30 day 90-day 1 year \M Royal Rank 12 12 75 1425 • 1325 1 7 7 75 9 95 1025 : CIBC 12 12 75 1425 1350 7 7 75 9 95 10 Bank of Montreal 12 12 75 1425 1325 7 7 75 9 95 1025 Scotia Bank 12 12 75 1425 13 50 7 7 75 9 95 1025 Toronto-Common 12 12 75 14 25 13 75 7 7 75 9 95 10 j National Bank 12 12 75 1425 - 1 7 75[ 9 9 25 ’075 Royal Truit - 12 75 1425 1325 7 25 7 75 925 9 75 11 75 Canada Trust 12 12 75 1425 1325 7 25 7 75 9 25 975 115 Canada Permanent 12 12 75, 1425 1325 7 25 7 75 9 25 975 11 75 Victoria and Grey 12 12 75 14 25 725 7 75 9 25 9 75 11 75 National Trust 12 12 75 - 13 75 7 25 7 75 9 25 9 75 11 75 Montreal True* 12 12 751 14 25 - 7 775 95 10 11 75 Effective REGIONAL INTEREST RATES Monday Rilti art tupplwd lo Th* Citutn by local offlcn 1 year Mortgages 5 year Contumef Sa vings T •rm deposi s 3 year loans Daily Bonus 30 day 90 day 1 year Bank ot B.C. 13 14‘/2 --- 133/4 7 73/4 9 9V2 10V2 Canada Trust 123/» 14V< 141/2 12% 7 V* 73/4 9% 93/4 11% Continental Bank --- --- --- PP 7V2 --- 9'/» 93/4 103/4 Credit Foncier 123/4 14'/4 14V2 --- --- --- 93/4 10 113/4 Greenbrier Mtg. 12% 14V4 14V2 Northland Bank 10 105/s 11 Omni Mortgage 123/» 14V4 14V2 --- --- --- --- --- --- The rates quoted above do not constitute the full range of loan and deposit options offered by local financial houses. Rates quoted for term deposits are based on the most popular range invested at the individual institutions (usually $5,000-$10,000) and are meant as guidelines only. PP in the consumer loan column means “prime-plus.” The businesses included here often offer services and terms other than those listed, so readers are advised to make inquiries. Local financial institutions are invited to contact The Citizen for inclusion in this weekly chart. 'Babies were killed' TORONTO (CP) - It is an inescapable conclusion that murder was the cause of some of the 36 mysterious baby deaths at Toronto’s Hospital for Sick Children, says the counsel for the Grange royal commission investigating the deaths. Paul Lamek told Mr. Justice Samuel Grange on Tuesday he has dismissed three other possible theories for the deaths: that the babies might have died from medication errors; that they might have died from natural causes; or that their deaths were due to bad luck and coincidence. “The conclusion is inescapable that babies were deliberately killed by overdoses of digoxin on the cardiac wards of the Hospital for Sick Children Lamek said. “The question for which I fear we will never have a complete and certain answer is how many suffered that fate.” Lamek’s statement, after 146 days of evidence, came as he began his final presentation to phase one of the commission, dealing with how the babies died. The second phase will examine the police investigation of the deaths and why they charged nurse Susan Nelles in March 1981 with four counts of murder. Nelles was discharged for lack of evidence at a preliminary hearing in May 1982 and is suing Metropolitan Toronto Police for wrongful arrest and malicious prosecution. Lamek didn't indicate who he believes might be responsible for the deaths but told the commission it is unlikely a mysterious visitor might have been the killer. He said a stranger would have great difficulty not being seen by someone on the ward at night if the visitor was waiting for a child to be left unattended. Lamek said any child on constant nursing care was not to be left unattended at any time by the nurse in charge. OUT OF JAIL Gregoire story told QUEBEC (CP) — Gilles Gregoire, independent member of the Quebec national assembly and convicted sex offender, said Tuesday that a young girl who testified against him last year danced nude for several judges and lawyers at a party a few month before. Taking his assembly seat for the first time since he was sentenced to jail last July, Gregoire obtained the unanimous consent of the assembly to table an 85-page document in which he recounts his experience. Gregoire was paroled in March after serving nine months of a sentence of two years less a day for having sex with seven juvenile girls. One of the girls testified in camera at his trial that two months before meeting him. she and several other girls danced before an audience of judges, lawyers, and businessmen at the Loews Le Concorde hotel in downtown Quebec City, Gregoire says. “How is it that a bunch of judges and lawyers were able with impunity to watch a show of young juvenile girls undressing and dancing nude?” asks the member for the riding of Frontenac and a co-founder of the Parti Que-becois. “Let’s not be hypocrites. Even they have the right to have a party. “But she was a minor and she was paid for it. She was therefore led into delinquency by the law, which was what I was accused of doing with her six months later." The document, entitled A Document of Pub lie Interest on the Administration of Justice, is a rambling account of his trial, his defence and his “reflections and questions" on the events surrounding his conviction. Gregoire says he is speaking out under his parliamentary immunity beause the judge ordered the case held behind closed doors “and I find I am unable to defend myself be fore public opinion and point out the falsehoods, threats, and irregularities that surrounded my trial.” Gregoire says he began receiving threats the moment he hired a lawyer The document alleges that his lawyer. Pierre Gaudreau, was threatened by a top-level bureaucrat who warned him that his law firm would lose a $100,000 contract if he took on Gregoire’s case. Gregoire says he informed then-justice min ister Andre Bedard of that threat. In a long chapter called My Defence Gregoire tells how in January 1983, he began re ceiving calls from young girls who threatened to tell police about his relations with them unless he paid them $1,500. Agreement celebrated TUKTOYAKTUK. N.W.T. (CPi -A feast of reindeer and Arctic char, drum-dancing ceremonies and a “boogie band" for the young were featured at a celebration Tuesday to mark the signing of the first native land-claim agreement in the North This Beaufort Sea community of about 900 people has been a flurry of activity in the last week — including a hasty spring clean-up — since the agreement with Ottawa was ratified by an overwhelming majority of the 2,500 Inuit affected. People from the other communities involved began arriving Tuesday by airplane and snowmobile for the official signing by John Munro, Indian and northern affairs minister, and members of the Committee for Original Peoples’ Entitlement, which negotiated the claim. The land claim, which still must be approved by Parliament, includes $45 million in 1977 dollars — inflation over the last seven years will nearly double that amount — and a $10-million economic enhancement fund. It also ensures a wide range of benefits and rights for the Inuvia-luit, as the Inuit Of the western Arctic are known. “Everyone is pleased that we’ve gotten over this hurdle." said Nellie Cournoyea. territorial minister of renewable resources and local member of the legislative assembly “There is still a lot of work to be done, but we’re ready to move on to the next stage.” Under the agreement, the Inuvia-luit will receive title to about 11.000 square kilometres of land adjacent to their communities. Another 2,000 square kilometres at Cape Bathurst would be held as a protected area $98.2 BILLION Gov't spending approved OTTAWA i CP i — The Commons on Tuesday approved government spending estimates of $98 2 billion for the 1984-85 fiscal year. Government and opposition MPs were out in force for Tuesday's vote on the main and supplementary estimates. but Liberal MPs easily defeated Conservative and New Democratic attempts to chop some of the spending. The Liberals cut short Conservative attempts to have $119 million trimmed from an allocation of $126 million for the Department of Consumer and Corporate Affairs and a $170 million payment to the Canada Post Corp scrapped Later the Liberals and Conservatives combined to quash an NDP move to trim $2 million from the $18 9-niillion administrative budget of the Solicitor General’s Department. The funding, which is to cover government expenses up to March 31. 1985. is a 10.5 per cent increase over 1984 Highlights of the spending estimates include art increase over 1983 for defence outlays of 11.2 per cent to $8 78 billion. $16 billion for the petroleum incentives program, and $3 97 billion for transfer payments to the provinces. OR THE RIVAL PUB HERE SOON Students are gpod at doing home work. If you’d like to have someone cut the grass, or paint the house, or do any other work around the house, consider hiring a student. Students will be eager to get a job this summer. Any job you can give them. So hire a student. Students.They work. Call The Canada Employment Centre for students nearest you. They'll send the right student for the job. Call 564-9090 I* Employment and Immigration Canada C44in« Mlnletar of State (Ybuth) Emplol at Immigration Canada C*Jln« Harvtoux-Pay*t1* Mlntetr* d' fctat * la Canada