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Gord Johns

Member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
NDP

Courtenay—Alberni
British Columbia
Voting Attendance: 67%
Expenses Last Quarter: $148,159.67

Government Page

Context: House Hansard - 238 - Oct/24/23

Mr. Gord Johns (Courtenay—Alberni, NDP)

Oct/24/23 1:51:32 p.m.
Watch
Re: Bill C-57

Madam Speaker, we are talking about trade agreements today. We have been talking about other trade agreements outside of this one as well. Right now, Canada is negotiating the UK-Canada free trade agreement and my colleague and I have been working together because we know that recipients of British pensions who live here in Canada have had their cost of living indexed and frozen, unlike Canadians who are living in the U.K., who are getting the cost of living increase. Does my colleague agree that, when these negotiations are taking place, when it comes to trade, that these irritants are impacting Canadians, especially vulnerable seniors? We know that a third of single women in Canada are living in poverty. Does he agree that these need to be a part of the conversation when we are discussing trade with countries like the U.K.?

145 words

All Topics

Context: House Hansard - 184 - Apr/25/23

Mr. Gord Johns (Courtenay—Alberni, NDP)

Apr/25/23 11:15:41 a.m.
Watch
Re: Bill C-47

Madam Speaker, we have heard from veterans about the gold-digger clause, which was implemented after World War I to prevent women from marrying veterans for their pensions and benefits. The Liberals promised to fix this. For eight years they have been in government. I know my colleague heard about this from veterans in her riding. Blair Meadows, a veteran from Qualicum Beach in my riding, cited, “If I marry after the age of 60 and pass away before my spouse, she won't receive any of my benefits.” This 100-year-old law needs to be abolished. It is an archaic regulation that really needs to be fixed. Does the member not agree that this is discriminatory against veterans, people who put their lives on the line, and leaves spouses in poverty? This is unacceptable. Does my colleague agree that this needs to be fixed by her government?

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Context: House Hansard - 180 - Apr/19/23

Mr. Gord Johns (Courtenay—Alberni, NDP)

Apr/19/23 3:58:01 p.m.
Watch

Mr. Speaker, it is timely that I am tabling this petition today on behalf of British pensioners who have had their pensions basically frozen through the indexation on pensions by the government of the United Kingdom. These are pensioners who have retired in Canada. It is timely because the Canadian Alliance of British Pensioners is here having its first-ever frozen pension day on the Hill. Its members are calling on Canada to take action. We know these pensioners are losing tens of thousands of dollars over the course of their retirement. With the current inflation crisis, many seniors are having trouble making ends meet. Canada is second only to Australia in its number of U.K. pensioners, with around 144,000 United Kingdom retirees. The indexation of the pensions is entirely dependent on specific agreements between countries, and Canada does not have an indexing agreement or a social security agreement with the U.K. British pensioners living in places such as the U.S., Jamaica and the European Union receive a full U.K. state pension, which is updated annually. These countries have reciprocal social security agreements with the U.K. Even U.K. citizens who continued to pay into their pensions while living outside of the U.K. and who are now living in Canada do not have an indexed pension. Pensions are deferred wages, and they must be able to support the people who rely on them. For some seniors, the lost income can mean retiring in poverty. The Canadian Alliance of British Pensioners has estimated that frozen British pensions cost the Canadian economy close to a billion dollars annually. Therefore, they are calling on the Government of Canada and the House of Commons to negotiate an end to the cost of living index freeze by the government of the United Kingdom for recipients of the British state pension who live in Canada.

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Context: House Hansard - 179 - Apr/18/23

Mr. Gord Johns (Courtenay—Alberni, NDP)

Apr/18/23 10:32:25 a.m.
Watch

Madam Speaker, I work with my colleague on many different items, like mental health, pensions and whatnot. We know that one-third of single women in this country are living in poverty. It is completely unacceptable. We know that pensions need to be increased. One thing he talked about in his speech was around British pensioners who have retired in Canada. Public servants who worked in Britain and who receive a pension are restricted. They do not get the rate of inflation increase that Canadians get when they retire in Britain, for example. It is basically pension theft. It is leaving many British expats who live in Canada vulnerable to the costs of inflation. Can my colleague speak about the importance of Canada and the British government working on a collective agreement? When we come forward with a trade deal, we want to ensure those conversations are part of it so that we do not leave British pensioners here in Canada in poverty, and so that we call out the British government for abandoning its own citizens.

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Member of Parliament

Gord Johns