One of the largest pressure points in the Liberals' budget is Old Age Security.Justin Tang/The Canadian Press
More things change
Re “Former PM Chrétien warns against premiers’ quick use of the notwithstanding clause” (Online, Nov. 6): The idea that the Constitution, and therefore the notwithstanding clause, should be interpreted as its authors intended implies that it should not evolve along with the country.
That theory was rejected long ago because the British North America Act gave the provinces education, health and welfare before they became so important. And there is little agreement on what politicians intended when constitutional debates began; they changed their positions and produced the document they had to, not the one they intended.
If the notwithstanding clause is written in stone, then logically Ottawa should also withdraw from provincial areas of responsibility. Or do we just apply “intention” when it serves our purposes?
Hopefully the Supreme Court will leave Bill 21 and the notwithstanding clause alone. Like it or not, I believe it meets the criteria of the Constitution.
Changing the Constitution is the job of elected politicians, not appointed justices.
Ed Whitcomb Author, Rivals for Power: Ottawa and the Provinces: The Contentious History of the Canadian Federation; Ottawa
Give back
Re “Ottawa again asks younger Canadians to make sacrifices for financially comfortable retirees” (Report on Business, Nov. 8): As a retired senior on a fixed income, I am puzzled by the diagnosis and proposed cure for the problem of government revenue shortfalls.
Only an estimated 15 per cent of Old Age Security pensioners earn more than $50,000 in annual after-tax income, according to Employment and Social Development Canada. Meanwhile, Statistics Canada notes that the low-income rate for single seniors is now 15 per cent higher than that for the population in general.
This cut-back prescription in the name of “shared sacrifice” makes no sense to me if the aim is to balance government revenue cost between seniors and non-seniors. Knowledge Bureau figures indicate seniors paid 27.9 per cent of total individual income tax reported by the Canada Revenue Agency in 2023, but they make up less than one-fifth of the population.
Not just charity but simple justice requires fairness. Our Canada needs to include seniors.
Tom Baker Burlington, Ont.
This hits the nail on the head regarding fair income distribution and Old Age Security.
As a senior with 35-year-olds still living in my basement, I see every day that young people need more help. It doesn’t make sense to be supplementing seniors with six-figure incomes, and I believe this view is supported by CARP amongst others.
A more palatable plan would be to phase a clawback over three to five years from $182,000 per couple to a lower amount, factoring in annual inflation. This would improve the budgetary bottom line and be a step in improving income distribution.
David Brewer Hamilton
As a recently retired woman, I agree that the budget has done nothing to address the pressure points of Old Age Security.
When will we address overpayment to couples who do not need the extra income? We should turn our collective attention to support our young people, who need more help than most of us ever did, and struggling low-income seniors.
I know many women who live on some OAS, a bit of the Guaranteed Income Supplement and maybe a pinch of the Canada Pension Plan. Anyone in similar straits would have a lifechanging experience to receive an additional $5,000 per year.
Some ask: Why should we give money to the young and old who did not earn this money or yet contribute meaningfully to any fund? Because it’s the right thing to do.
Let’s stop pretending that budget overruns matter, because in some situations they clearly do not.
Cathy Griffin Burnaby, B.C.
Parks and rec
Re “Parks should be made for people. Why does such an obvious idea elude us?” (Nov. 8): Access to food can improve enjoyment of some parks. Parks in Europe and even Quebec (there is a lovely café at Quebec City’s Plains of Abraham) are more in tune with this idea.
Food can also be a destination on its own. I’m not talking about the occasional offerings of a concession stand serving fries and ice cream. A place with coffee or tea and a little pastry or small sandwich would enhance a park visit.
This would also mean access to washrooms, whose lack can limit people’s enjoyment of the outdoors in the off-season.
L.K. Andersen Toronto
There is a lovely bit of public space management in Burlington.
Years ago, the city voted to sell off land at the bottom of several downtown streets that ended at Lake Ontario to adjacent homeowners. The local councillor, now mayor, urged a compromise to also create mini-parks, now called Windows-to-the-Lake, from the remaining land.
The city installed chairs and benches overlooking the lake and put up a sign instructing how to behave. Virtually every day, there are people enjoying the million-dollar views, the birds, the sun, the clouds, everything that comes with access to the lakeshore. With minimal investment, citizens are given the chance to enjoy what would otherwise require literally millions of dollars.
When I walk my Labs along Lakeshore Road, we must visit each and every one of these parks. It is a quite lovely experience.
Michael Vollmer Burlington, Ont.
Walk the walk
Re “These Gen Z friends gained online fame – and haters – for their hours-long Toronto walks" (Nov. 6): It was so nice to read an article with a positive slant.
Walking is restorative physically and emotionally, and it’s refreshing to read about young people who want to connect with each other and explore on foot. I think there’s no time wasting but time well spent.
Cheryl Zener Toronto
Re “For these older Canadians, the Bruce Trail is both a playground and a pilgrimage” (Nov. 8): No disrespect to the Camino de Santiago in Europe or the Coast to Coast Walk in Britain, but as No. 2955 on the list of end-to-end Bruce Trail hikers, I was delighted to see attention paid to an opportunity closer to home.
My hiking partner and I took a slow and steady approach: a total of 53 days over four years. When she died a few years later, writing a book about this adventure and friendship steadied me through the turmoil of loss.
Walks in the Dundas Valley kept me grounded. Then, and now.
Marg Heidebrecht Hamilton
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