15 March 2007

The pension plan deal so nice...

They announced it twice.

New finance minister Tom Marshall announced on Thursday that the province will borrow almost $1.0 billion to cover a portion of the unfunded liability in public sector pension plans.

The project will involve an immediate injection of $400 million with a further $597 million to come no later than June 30.

Is this the same announcement as the one made by the old finance minister, Loyola Sullivan, last December?

Notice that Marshall said nothing about the $400 million Sullivan said would be borrowed in December with a further amount later in the fiscal year.

Something says the Sullivan plan got caught in the serial government's decision-making grinder and what was supposed to happen in December was delayed until March.