Widows who outlived two husbands will not be allowed to cash in on both pensions, a Federal Court judge has ruled..Blacklock’s Reporter said the judge ruled Parliament intended the Canada Pension Plan to operate as an insurance program not “a social welfare scheme.”.“Although far-reaching, the Plan was never intended to be comprehensive or meet the needs of all contributors in every conceivable circumstance,” wrote Justice David Stratas..The Plan launched in 1963 “is not anything like a guaranteed annual income,” he added..“It is more like modest help for recipients to meet their basic needs.”.Robena Weatherley, 91, of Cambridge Narrows, N.B. argued the Plan breached her Charter rights by failing to pay two survivors’ benefits after she outlived two husbands. Weatherley’s first husband died in 1969. She remarried in 1973. Her second husband died in 2012..Canada Pension Plan regulations forbid double-dipping by widows..“Some who have paid plenty into the Plan might never receive a cent while others who have paid little might get much more,” wrote Stratas..“Like many insurance schemes, the Plan is self-sustaining. It has no recourse to general government funding.”.“Giving to some takes from others..“Under the Canada Pension Plan, after a spouse dies, the surviving spouse can receive a survivor’s pension. Suppose the surviving spouse remarries and then the second spouse dies. Can the surviving spouse receive two survivor’s pensions? No.”.Federal lawyers argued the Pension Plan “was only ever intended to make up for the loss of one wage earner and it would be unfair to some recipients if others could receive simultaneous benefits for two wage earners,” noted the Court..Parliament never meant to “stack survivor’s benefits on top of one another.”.The original Pension Plan only paid survivor’s benefits to widows once they turned 65. In 1968, the age of eligibility was lowered to 45..The Plan also disqualified pensions to widows if they remarried but Parliament repealed the provision by unanimous vote in 1986..The Pension Plan pays benefits based on workers’ contributions to a maximum $1,204 a month. The current average payment is $619 monthly..Dave Naylor is the News Editor of the Western Standard.,dnaylor@westernstandardonline.com,.Twitter.com/nobby7694
Widows who outlived two husbands will not be allowed to cash in on both pensions, a Federal Court judge has ruled..Blacklock’s Reporter said the judge ruled Parliament intended the Canada Pension Plan to operate as an insurance program not “a social welfare scheme.”.“Although far-reaching, the Plan was never intended to be comprehensive or meet the needs of all contributors in every conceivable circumstance,” wrote Justice David Stratas..The Plan launched in 1963 “is not anything like a guaranteed annual income,” he added..“It is more like modest help for recipients to meet their basic needs.”.Robena Weatherley, 91, of Cambridge Narrows, N.B. argued the Plan breached her Charter rights by failing to pay two survivors’ benefits after she outlived two husbands. Weatherley’s first husband died in 1969. She remarried in 1973. Her second husband died in 2012..Canada Pension Plan regulations forbid double-dipping by widows..“Some who have paid plenty into the Plan might never receive a cent while others who have paid little might get much more,” wrote Stratas..“Like many insurance schemes, the Plan is self-sustaining. It has no recourse to general government funding.”.“Giving to some takes from others..“Under the Canada Pension Plan, after a spouse dies, the surviving spouse can receive a survivor’s pension. Suppose the surviving spouse remarries and then the second spouse dies. Can the surviving spouse receive two survivor’s pensions? No.”.Federal lawyers argued the Pension Plan “was only ever intended to make up for the loss of one wage earner and it would be unfair to some recipients if others could receive simultaneous benefits for two wage earners,” noted the Court..Parliament never meant to “stack survivor’s benefits on top of one another.”.The original Pension Plan only paid survivor’s benefits to widows once they turned 65. In 1968, the age of eligibility was lowered to 45..The Plan also disqualified pensions to widows if they remarried but Parliament repealed the provision by unanimous vote in 1986..The Pension Plan pays benefits based on workers’ contributions to a maximum $1,204 a month. The current average payment is $619 monthly..Dave Naylor is the News Editor of the Western Standard.,dnaylor@westernstandardonline.com,.Twitter.com/nobby7694
