From documents produced during the Disclosure Phase of the legal proceedings a startling bit of important information came to light!

Martin's bus line sought to hide damning report

Trustee wanted regulators to amend report on collapse of Voyageur's pension fund

Sunday, August 24, 2003

The trustees who ran the company pension plan for Paul Martin's bus line, Voyageur Colonial, pressured a federal pension regulator to amend a report on the fund's 1997 collapse, and even suggested shredding part of the document to hide it from public view.

Pension plan members were left with a 30-per-cent shortfall in their benefits after Greyhound bought the bus lines from Voyageur, which was half-owned by then finance minister Martin. The alleged mismanagement by the trustees is now the subject of an ongoing class-action lawsuit filed by the pensioners in Ontario Superior Court.

The collapse of the Voyageur plan was investigated by the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions, an agency under control of the Department of Finance. Documents obtained by the Canadian Alliance show that trustees for the Voyageur plan tried to convince OSFI officials to remove unflattering conclusions from an independent report on the plan's failure.

At a meeting with OSFI officials in Dec. 1998, the trustees claimed the executive summary of the report by Price Waterhouse Coopers was slanted against them and should either be removed or altered.

Although OSFI refused to remove the summary from the report, officials asked Price Waterhouse to alter the document and, according to internal OSFI e-mails, the firm did just that.

Based on the conclusions of the report, OSFI decided not to take any action to correct the shortfalls in the Voyageur pension plan, which left 146 plan members with reduced pensions.

Internal correspondence shows OSFI was aware of political sensitivity of the Voyageur pension failure, which it noted was "the first failure of a federally supervised pension plan involving significant losses to individuals." The agency prepared special briefing notes on the Voyageur file to be made available to "certain MPs on demand."

At the time, Mr. Martin's family owned a 50-per-cent stake in Voyageur through the holding company, CSL Equity Investments Ltd. But his office claims he was never in a conflict of interest because he had delegated responsibility for OSFI to his secretary of state for financial institutions.

The documents released by OSFI under the Access to Information Act show that Mr. Martin's aides, Karl Littler and Terrie O'Leary, were kept in the loop about the Voyageur pension plan file by OSFI's deputy superintendent, Nick LePan, who later took over the top job at the agency.

Ethics counsellor Howard Wilson said there was nothing wrong with the updates because Ms. O'Leary was supposed to act as "a firewall" between the department and Mr. Martin. A spokesman for Mr. Martin's Liberal leadership campaign has said that Mr. Martin had no involvement in the Voyageur matter.

OSFI first learned of the pending shortfalls with the Voyageur pension in 1993. When the company sold its bus routes to Greyhound in 1994, the plan was left in an even worse position. Most of the employees who were expected to pay into it were transferred to Greyhound, while others took early retirement and began collecting pension benefits sooner than expected. The plan was finally terminated in 1997, with a $2.4-million shortfall.

Unhappy pensioners filed a petition with OSFI asking for an investigation of what went wrong. OSFI commissioned the Price Waterhouse audit, but never took any action to correct the problem.

The board of trustees that ran the Voyageur plan was made up by representatives from the company and the employees' union.

According to minutes for the meeting between the trustees and OSFI in December 1998, company representative Phil Valois asked if the summary prepared by Price Waterhouse could be removed from the report altogether.

The trustees' lawyer, Daniele Mayrand, wanted the summary "completely destroyed or shredded so it would never be disclosed."

OSFI's legal counsel said it wasn't possible to shred the report, and instead recommended it be discussed with Price Waterhouse.

Another trustee asked during the meeting if there was any political pressure on OSFI on the Voyageur file. But further details were blanked out of the minutes released by OSFI.

The minutes note OSFI official Ron Bergeron planned to arrange a conference call between Mr. Valois and Price Waterhouse to discuss the trustees' concerns. Later, Price Waterhouse produced an amended report. It is not clear from documents released what was removed from the final version.

Fiona Campbell, a lawyer for the Voyageur pensioners in the class action, told the Citizen she was unaware the report had been altered at the request of the trustees. The legal action recently received court approval for class certification, pending the production of certain documents.

Neither Voyageur nor Mr. Martin is named as a defendant in the lawsuit against the trustees. Mr. Martin continues to own Voyageur -Colonial, although the company no longer runs bus lines. It retains ownership of the bus terminals in Ottawa and Montreal.

OSFI this year approved a request from Canada Steamship Lines, Mr. Martin's family shipping company, to liquidate a $163-million surplus in its pension plan. The surplus was split equally between the company and the pension plan members.

When things in your life seem almost too much to handle, when 24 hours in a day are not enough, remember the mayonnaise jar .... and the beer.

A professor stood before his philosophy class and had some items in front of him.. When the class began, wordlessly, he picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with golf balls.

He then asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed that it was.

So the professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar. He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles rolled into the open areas between the golf balls. He then asked the students again if the jar was full. They agreed it was.

The professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. Of course, the sand filled up everything else. He asked once more if the jar was full. The students responded with an unanimous "yes."

The professor then produced two cans of beer from under the table and poured the entire contents into the jar, effectively filling the empty space between the sand. The students laughed "Now," said the professor, as the laughter subsided, "I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life. The golf balls are the important things – your family, your children, your health, your friends, your favourite passions – things that if everything else was lost and only they remained, your life would still be full.

"The pebbles are the other things that matter, like your job, your house, your car. The sand is everything else – the small stuff."

"If you put the sand into the jar first," he continued, "there would be no room for the pebbles or the golf balls. The same goes for life. If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff, you will never have room for the things that are important to you. Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness. Play with your children. Take time to get medical checkups. Take your partner out to dinner. Play another 18 holes.

There will always be time to clean the house, and fix the disposal. "Take care of the golf balls first, the things that really matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just sand."

One of the students raised her hand and inquired what the beer represented.

The professor smiled. "I'm glad you asked. It just goes to show you that no matter how full your life may seem, there's always room - for a couple of beers."

Contributed by:

F/O John den Ouden CD, LL.B

AFP/AAC member

This very important issue, now that more and more CF Retirees are living much longer and are marrying for a second time (in some cases for the first time) the necessity to leave the survivor a benefit is of paramount concern!

The CF Retiree contribute to the CFS Account throughout their entire career and one of the benefits is a 50% survivors’ benefit. (The overpaid MPs gave themselves a mere 3/5^ths. Dividing five into three equals 60%). The Canada Pension Benefits Standards Act stipulates that any organization that has financial dealings with the government must provide a 60% survivors’ benefit for their employees!

Several years ago the AFP/AAC through litigation, attempted to force the government to provide the survivors’ benefit to all CF Retirees regardless of the CF Superannuates age. We were unsuccessful and were NOT allowed to proceed to the Supreme Court.

The government introduced Pension Reform Bill C-55 which permitted a retiree who married after age 50 to pay for a survivor’s benefit by reducing his/her CF Superannuation by as much as 50%! How generous, paying twice for a benefit, also the military have to contribute to the Unemployment Insurance Fund, now called the Employment Insurance Fund, yet cannot collect a cent upon release from the Forces!! (Remember that this is the fund controlled by Jane Stewart and was the subject of the Billion Dollar Boondoggle!) No wonder morale is so low in the military.

After considerable pressure by the Human Rights Commissioner, encouraged by the AFP/AAC the Attorney General Anne McLellan ordered a review of the Human Rights Commissioner’s mandate regarding making rulings and recommendations on Acts in being before the establishment of the Human Rights Commission. The Report to McLellan recommended that the Human Rights Commissioner indeed should be able to rule on Acts in effect before the establishment of the Human Rights Commission. Unfortunately the Report was an omnibus Report and included too many diverse recommendations so in effect the Report was side lined.

McLellan was shifted to Health and Martin Couchon became the Attorney General. He became pre-occupied with that other billion dollar boondoggle - gun registration, legalizing drug use and homosexual marriages so couldn’t take time to look into the Marriage after Age 60 issue.

Of course we all know Jean Chretien’s distaste for the military so there was NO help from him or his office. (We should remember that his present chief advisor told Chretien away back in 1975 that Canada did NOT need a military! That individual will no doubt become a senator within the next week or so.)

In the meantime John McCallum, Defence Minister, has recirculated a letter to all CF Retirees touting the great achievement that by losing up to 50% of one’s superannuation one can provide for a survivor’s benefit. One must bear in mind that the CF Superannuation is not large enough now for two to live on, yet one must try to live on half to provide a benefit. And the CF Retiree Served Canada Honourably in uniform in War and Peace.

An example of the stupidity of the current legislation: If at age 58, a retiree were to marry a 22 year old and died a couple years later, his survivor would automatically receive 50% of the retiree’s superannuation for up to the next 60 years! Yet a 60 year old retiree, who marries a partner of sixty there is NO entitlement for a survivor’s benefit if he died at age 62. In this instance the survivor possibly could live to the same ripe old age as the aforementioned 22 year old yet would NOT use up as much of the surplus from the CFS Account.

No wonder the government feels it can get away with stealing the $16.6 billion from our retirement savings.

Not one of the Opposition Parties has shown much interest in our plight .Occasionally one will bring up the concern for a PR statement and promptly forgets it until the constituents send in a bunch of letters.

The media also haven’t been much help. Possibly because most reporters have NO idea what it is all about, Furthermore, as so few people are directly affected, they are unfortunately, of relatively little importance.

Now that we have a new Prime Minister, possibly flooding the human Rights Commissioner and one’s local MP with letters of complaint might get this issue back on the rails again. It is very probable that as well, we shall have a new Attorney General to whom we can write.

However we shouldn’t hold our breaths expecting justice or compassion from the government rogues or support from the 100 generals. (The Company of generals did go down to about 70 but has since sneaked back up to 100 for less than 50,000 military!)

This poem was written by a peace keeping soldier stationed overseas. The following is his request. I think it is reasonable.

PLEASE. Would you do me the kind favour of sending this to as any people as you can?

Christmas will be coming soon and some credit is due to our Canadian service men and women for our being able to celebrate these festivities.

Let's try in this small way to pay a tiny bit of what we owe.

Make people stop and think of our heroes, living and dead, who sacrificed themselves for us.

Please, do your small part to plant this small seed.

Contributor

Mrs Joyce Austin,

AFP/AAC Member

the Widow of Major Pat Austin CD

On his trip to the Far East this year our past PM was reported to have stated that "at the end of the year the military doesn't return anything to the government". I feel that this type of derogatory statement requires an immediate response from the AFP/AAC. The military’s only and greatest contribution to Canada is "Military Lives".

What a sin it is when our government shows such disrespect for our Canadian Forces.

Question: As AFP/AAC, should we not be publicly denouncing what Jean Chretien said?

Mr John Ferris CD

AFP/AAC member

by email

It is pointed out elsewhere in this NEWSLETTER that Jean Chretien has had only contempt for the military from day one. Crocodile tears at military funerals for Photo Ops but nothing else.

A message was sent to Jean Chretien over his stupid comment but his bloated staff must have filed it in file thirteen, as no response was ever received. Must NOT upset the "great one" you know!

Of course the military pay contributes several million dollars to the Employment Insurance Fund annually and has its retirement savings robbed while serving Honourably and dying on foreign soil but presumably that is NOT considered by dictator Chretien as "contributions". Too bad that he has had his head in the sand for so long.

Watching the growing parade of teary-eyed Liberal cabinet ministers announcing their retirements before Paul Martin can fire them, it is certainly comforting to know so many long faces will soon be laughing all the way to the bank. Seems those whopping pay hikes MPs voted themselves back in 2001 have turned their already gold-plated pensions into solid platinum. As a result, some Liberal cabinet ministers, and even some regular MPs, will remain in the top 2% of Canadian income earners even after they leave office -- just by cashing their monthly government pension cheques.

Sheila Copps, for instance, when and if she decides to retire, is in line for a parliamentary pension that will literally put more money in her pocket than if she'd won the Cash-for-Life lottery. According to figures compiled for us by the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, if Copps left office next spring, she would get a pension of over $123,000 a year -- more than $10,000 a month, for life -- starting the day she turns 55, three years from now.

This pension bonanza -- courtesy of taxpayers -- was the hidden jackpot of Jean Chretien's gift to himself and his fellow politicians in June of 2001. At the time, MPs were earning $69,100 plus a tax-free allowance of $22,800. Using the argument of making MPs' pay completely transparent, the tax-free portion was converted to an equivalent taxable amount that brought the total to about $108,000. While they were at it, MPs gave themselves an additional raise of roughly 20% to $131,400. Since then, automatic increases have raised their total pay another $7,800 to $139,200.

Well, guess what? Pensions that were previously calculated based on an MP's pay of $69,100 are now based on twice that amount -- $139,200. The win gets even bigger for the PM, cabinet ministers, opposition party leaders and other parliamentarians above the rank of backbencher. The enormity of these golden eggs for their golden years may even help to explain why so few Chretien loyalists are apparently heading to the trough with patronage appointments.

According to the CTF's calculations, for example, Transport Minister David Collenette would make almost as much money by retiring from government as he would by taking a top diplomatic post. Collenette, a staunch Chretien loyalist of many years, has long been rumoured to be in line for an appointment as Canadian high commissioner in London, a job that pays around $125,000 a year. But the rules say he can't have his pension, and eat his canapes, too. If Collenette simply retires in the next few months, his pension will be about $123,000 a year, plus all the free time in the world.

Likewise, Finance Minister John Manley has announced (in a bit of a snit) he will not run again in the next election. Manley apparently has the option of becoming Canada's next ambassador to Washington, a job which pays about $130,000 a year. Alternatively, he can head off into the private sector, while collecting his tidy parliamentary pension of $114,000 a year when he turns 55 in another 18 months.

Herb Dhaliwal came into politics a millionaire in 1993, and is now returning to his business, still a millionaire, but with an annual pension of about $70,000.

Don Boudria, who likes to remind people he was once a busboy in the parliamentary restaurant before he discovered politics, certainly won't have to worry about washing dishes to make ends meet in his old age. The day Boudria hits 55, the cheques will start rolling in at the rate of $125,000 a year.

And don't pass the hat for the retiring prime minister. Jean Chretien, who once described politics as just another career, will soon be getting not-just-another pension of roughly $154,000 a year.

In case you're wondering why the opposition parties aren't screaming bloody murder about all this, think Deb Gray. Remember her? The first Reform party MP elected to the Commons, the one who put stuffed pigs on the Parliament Hill lawn to protest gold-plated pensions? Seems she changed her mind along the way. Gray is retiring next year with a yearly pension of over $70,000.

60 years ago, how time flies? Now leaving just a few short months before the Ceremonies take place, it is my pleasure, in conjunction with ELLISON TOURS and TRAVEL Exeter Ont., to assist in organising a group of interested people to take part in that Commemoration. This is a well established agency with whom I have had many happy and successful tours to Normandy such as for the 50th Anniversary and to Egypt to attend Memorial Services at El Alamein.

We will leave Canada on 1 June 2004 and after a few days in England, travel to France in time to attend the various official ceremonies: then visit some WW I Battle Sites in France, and Belgium, on our way to Holland, returning to England in time for our flight back to Canada on 12 June 2004.

An option is being arranged (for a limited number and length) enabling members to extend their stay in England after returning from Europe.

For further information please contact any of the following:

Ernie Huntley 1-519-455-9303,

e mail mayhern@symptico.ca

Heather Moffatt or Barbara Lawson

1-800-264-7024, 1-519-235-2000,

email: heatherm@ettravel.com or barbaral@ettravel.com (pse. mention my name)

Ernie Huntley

President Emeritus

Another frustrating year has gone by without resolutions of problems and concerns.

There hasn’t been too much help from the Official Opposition which is usually the main support when criticizing government decisions and action.

We have had every objection by government to our proceeding with the litigation to recover the stolen retirement savings overruled by the court with costs against the Crown.

We have an important union leave one of the other litigant groups to join us in our fight

The other three primary issues are temporarily stalled: 60% survivor’s benefit, a survivor’s benefit for those who marry after age 60 and the other, the theft of Employment Insurance contributions with NO entitlement to the unemployment insurance benefit!

Defence Minister McCallum did put the boots to the senior brass who it appeared were the only beneficiaries of benefits under the SISIP! The Colonel responsible for the operation of this insurance scheme was ordered to make important changes so that all could avail themselves of the benefits available under this plan. He should have been fired; imagine the gall of a staff officer ignoring a minister’s orders! Yet none are prepared to stick up for the ill equipped troops or demand safe aircraft for them!!

Oh yes. The generals are getting themselves new offices located in an old country club! Rumour has it that the numbers of generals had slowly declined to about 73, but only temporarily! Apparently the number has crept up to 100 at last count. No wonder we have no troops and no money for the lower ranks. Where are the leaders of yesteryear?

Maybe 2004 will see a turnaround in the fortunes of Canada’s military and we will again become the proud force it once was. Our troops are still second to none as individuals, but they need decent modern equipment and leaders, NOT managers in charge! And the expensive social engineering must be stopped. One million dollars for combat brassieres indeed! OR, all must be bilingual above the rank of corporal! "Quel" nonsense.

Unfortunately the new Prime Minister being party to the destruction of the military and the theft of the superannuation funds over the past 10 years, there won’t be much help to improve the situation during his tenure!

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