While Manitoba’s Progressive Conservatives have been silent about their stance on an expansion to the Canada Pension Plan, experts predict the party’s victory Tuesday could mean the province won’t support CPP expansion.
“Progressive Conservatives are not going to touch anything that in any way is going to affect business adversely,” says Meir Serfaty, professor of political science at Brandon University, citing the party’s pro-business stance.
But, he says, “to be fair, even the NDP didn’t raise [the issue]” during the election either.
However, during the federal election last year, Manitoba’s outgoing NDP premier, Greg Selinger, expressed support for expanding the CPP.
Read: CPP more costly than other public sector pensions: report
Read: What does the industry expect from CPP talks?
So far, Saskatchewan has been the most vocal CPP expansion holdout, but with a potential second provincial holdout, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau could face challenges in his efforts to boost the CPP. Two-thirds of the provinces representing two-thirds of Canada’s population need to support the expansion in order for it to take place.
Have your say: Should other provinces join the ORPP?
On Tuesday, the Manitoba Conservatives ended the NDP’s 16-year rule of the province. The party, under Leader Brian Pallister, who once served as an MP under former prime minister Stephen Harper, won a strong majority with 40 of the legislature’s 57 seats.