Dear editor:
It was with interest that I read the opinion article by federal Liberal candidate Andrea Kaiser (“In defence of Liberals’ record on supporting seniors,” The Lake Report, May 27) in which she outlined the various monies that have been directed to seniors by the federal government.
Like Ms. Kaiser, I, too, understand that “life is expensive” for seniors living on fixed incomes and any increase in the amounts associated with the Canada Pension Plan (CPP), Old Age Security (OAS) and Guaranteed Income Supplement (GIS) are very welcome.
Aside from the political fluttering, the update provided on the various increases was appreciated, however, the underlying question that now begs for an answer centres on how does the federal Liberal government propose to mitigate the cost of the huge deficit it has racked up without resorting to measures that will work to remove any of the monetary gains given to seniors?
A real concern moving forward is that all the money for seniors that Ms. Kaiser mentioned has the potential to be swallowed up by the same federal Liberal government that handed it out (“one hand giveth and one hand taketh”).
When all is said and done, those who “have built this country we are so lucky to have” may end up not enjoying any increase and may in fact be worse off.
In view of the reticence shown so far by the federal Liberals on plans to reduce the national deficit I am not certain that they want any attention directed toward this matter.
As we all know, it is easier to spend than to repay and repaying is really no fun. One federal budget in two years does not a debt servicing/recovery plan make.
Perhaps I should not be so concerned as to the level of the deficit that continues to grow under the current Liberal government as maybe, just maybe, “the budget will balance itself.”
With regards to the closing paragraph of the article – when did Andrea Kaiser become the MP for the federal riding of Niagara Falls, Fort Erie and Niagara-on-the-Lake? I will admit that since my retirement I have been sleeping in a bit more than previously, however I had no idea I had slept through a federal election.
William Morrison Sr.
NOTL
