On July 7, Manitoba Premier Brian Pallister announced that the province has agreed to sign the agreement in principle (AIP) for an expanded Canada Pension Plan (CPP).

Manitoba had initially withheld its support for the new CPP measures and argued that additional changes were required. The federal government recently agreed to consider Manitoba's proposals and include them as an agenda item at the next finance ministers’ meeting and as part of the next CPP triennial review. As a result, the province has agreed to sign the original AIP that was put forward in June.

Proposed additional items for consideration

“Our government proposed additional items for consideration by finance ministers which would make CPP not just bigger, but better as well,” says Pallister. “We are very pleased by the support that these proposals have received from other jurisdictions and with the willingness of the federal government to conduct research and analysis to support their continued discussion.”

Quebec, which manages its own pension plan, is now the only province not to have signed the AIP. "Quebec is in a different situation," commented Federal Finance Minister Bill Morneau following the initial round of discussions last month. "The Quebec pension plan is a different vehicle. The costs are different than the Canadian Pension Plan. The idea that more analysis is required is something that we completely understood around the table."