Canadian seniors over the age of 75 may have noticed some extra cash in their bank accounts on Wednesday.
Federal Old Age Security payments have increased by 10 per cent, which is the largest increase since 1973.
Kamal Khera, Canada’s minister of seniors, said during a phone interview Wednesday that after a lifetime of hard work, seniors deserve to live with security and dignity in their retirement years.
“This means that for a full pensioner, they will get more than $800 extra over the first year in new financial supports, and this is actually going to help more than three million seniors add more money into their pockets,” said Khera.
Khera said the increases in Old Age Security was a commitment made by the Liberal government as part of its platform a couple of years ago. She said it is a change many seniors have wanted for a while.
It also follows a one-time payment of $500 that the Government of Canada provided in August 2021 to seniors who were 75 years and older as of June 2022.
“The one-time payment was provided to help address some of the immediate needs of the group of seniors at that time,” said Khera.
“And I know the impact that this is going to have on their lives.”
She adds seniors are living longer than ever before, which may cause them to incur more costs, like living with a disability, losing a spouse or even outliving their savings.
“They need that extra support; they need those extra resources,” she said.
“We’ve heard from seniors on that front, and I’m so proud that we’re able to deliver on that.”
Khera said 25 per cent of Canada’s population will be 65 and older by 2037, which she says has motivated Ottawa to make more support available to seniors, including the enhancement of the Canada Pension Plan and increases to the Guaranteed Income Supplement for vulnerable seniors.
The latter of which will see $500 go to single seniors, while couples will receive $750.
“This is a priority for us,” said Khera.
“We made a commitment to seniors and part of my job is to making sure that we deliver on that and I’m looking forward to sharing more in the near future.”
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