Canadians prefer to keep old age benefits eligibility to 65: poll

Three-quarters of Canadians oppose raising the age of eligibility —from 65 to 67 — for the Old Age Security benefit, a new poll has found.

The national survey by Ipsos Reid, conducted this week for Postmedia News and Global TV, suggests Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s government could have a tough public-relations battle on its hands as it moves forward with plans to reform the country’s public pension plan.

John Wright, senior vice-president of Ipsos Reid, said in an interview that the potential policy shift — making seniors wait two years longer for pension benefits — is clearly unpopular when considered “in black and white.”

“This dog won’t hunt,” Wright said. However, he cautioned that public opinion could shift once the government’s plans are actually announced and if Harper successfully explains the financial necessity for scaling back rising pension scheme costs.

Still, he said the political ramifications less than a year into the majority Conservative government’s four-year mandate are clear.

“I think Harper’s going to weather a storm, because it comes at a time when the Liberals and NDP are rejuvenating and this is something which they can grab on to,” said Wright.

“This is red meat for the opposition parties. It gives them the first chance to nail the government on something which is widely recognized as sacrosanct. They are going to take this flag and run it up the tallest poll, and will muster every source for demonstrations on the Hill.” Among the findings of the poll: 74 per cent of Canadians oppose increasing the OAS age eligibility to 67 from 65.

Women (81 per cent) are more likely to oppose compared with men (66 per cent);

Canadians ages 35 to 54 (81 per cent) are also most likely to be in opposition, followed by Canadians ages 55 and over (73 per cent) and 18 to 34 (64 per cent);

Opposition is strongest in Atlantic Canada (86 per cent), followed by those living in Saskatchewan and Manitoba (76 per cent), Ontario (75 per cent), Quebec (75 per cent), British Columbia (71 per cent) and Alberta (58 per cent).

For the Jan. 30-Feb. 1 survey, a sample of 1,002 adults from Ipsos Reid’s online panel was interviewed. The margin of error is 3.1 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.

The new findings came as debate raged in the House of Commons Thursday over the issue, which emerged as a political bombshell a week ago when Harper used a speech in Davos, Switzerland, to signal his plans to slash the cost of the public pension scheme sometime in the future to keep it sustainable.

Opposition parties blasted the government for manufacturing a false crisis about the future sustainability of the OAS, while the Conservative government indicated it is determined to lead the country into making tough, but necessary, choices on pension reform.

Harper has not revealed the specifics of his plans, but it is believed the government is considering raising the OAS age-eligibility to 67 some time in the future to keep more people in the workforce, and to reduce the annual costs of the OAS.

Finance Minister Jim Flaherty signalled Thursday the government will not back down. “Actions need to be taken to ensure long term sustainability,” he told journalists. “This is not an issue that can be ignored, unless we want to put at risk the fiscal track for the country, which would be a mistake.”