Eligibility for the Quebec Pension Plan: the PQ proposes not to raise the minimum age

Eligibility for the Quebec Pension Plan: the PQ proposes not to raise the minimum age

Members of the National Assembly in Quebec are considering the question of the minimum age of eligibility for the Quebec Pension Plan (QPP). The current age of eligibility for a full Quebec pension is 65, though those as young as 60 can have access, though it comes with a penalty.

The Parti Québécois is asking the Government of Quebec not raise the minimum age which could, according to some proposals, be raised to 62. The former PQ member for Gaspé and party spokesperson, Méganne Perry Mélançon, indicated that there are other solutions before raising the eligibility age.

“There are several solutions to, say, keep the segment of the population that is still active, that wishes to remain in the labor market. Well, there are solutions to implement to incentivize them and ensure that they are not harmed or disadvantaged,” she said (translated). “When we know that it will be people who will be taxed a lot or that they will still have to contribute to the QPP when the majority are over 65 and all that. Then, it is workers that we want to have on the job market. But, to impose a measure like that, which is really wall to wall, which does not give older workers the choice of retiring at a certain age, we know that there are jobs that are extremely difficult on the physically, psychologically as well. And so, to impose this solution, for us, it is not viable, it is not the way to keep our elderly in the workforce.”

The full (French-language) interview with PQ spokesperson Méganne Perry Mélançon is available here.