Because the fund had a $550 billion value on January 1, the fund now has an 88% surplus. However, pension experts recommend forecasting with the most likely return estimate. Using the 11% return of the last 12 years, instead of our Chief Actuary’s recommended 6% return, this CPP surplus mathematically mushrooms to 450%.

Standard pension protocol demands a surplus distribution when the surplus is a mere 25%. In 2000, for example, professors at Ryerson University received as much as $20,000 each when the Ryerson pension fund’s surplus was only 18%. The CRA demanded this surplus distribution, but they have no jurisdiction over the CPP. Please compare Ryerson’s 18% surplus to the CPP’s 450% surplus.

If the CPP conservatively distributed $170 billion of this surplus,

• 17 million Canadians would receive $10,000 each, on average,

• almost all business profits would increase by 20%,

• our GDP would increase by roughly 5%,

• 200,000 jobs would be created,

• poverty would be reduced,

• donations to charity would increase considerably,

• current unfair-to-seniors, generational inequity would be corrected,

• our deficit would decrease by $50 billion though increased income tax, increased HST and reduced social programs.

Moreover, with slight changes to how our CPP contributions are handled, our growing problem of income inequality in Canada could be somewhat solved. For example, almost all 25-year-olds could be $1.2 million wealthier by age 65.

In over six years, no politician, economist, actuary, or journalist has provided any reason to NOT distribute the CPP’s surplus. Hundreds have been consulted.

CPP Investments will likely continue investing so successfully. They have many advantages over the average investor. For example, recently, their private equity fund, 1/3 of the total fund, had an unheard-of 33.2% return, as shown on page 43 of their Annual Report 2022.

However, three powerful, disgraceful industries have engineered a cover-up that prevents these benefits from reaching millions of deserving Canadians

1. The financial industry, which now greedily corners 47% of all corporate profits but only contributes 7.5% to our GDP, is wary of CPP Investments’ prowess. They are concerned that Canadians may demand the ability to voluntarily invest with CPP Investments. Investors would probably earn 2 ½ times the profit over ten years. They would likely transfer billions of investment dollars from the investment industry to CPP Investments.

   The industry’s representative claims CPP legislation could “undermine” their own lucrative retirement products. Who should be undermined? Should it be millions of struggling Canadians? Or should it be an industry that already hogs 47% of all corporate profits and wants to keep it that way, regardless of the impact on millions of other Canadians.  

2. The actuarial industry knows that, if CPP Investments continues so successfully, the CPP could give a 25-year-old a $100,000 CPP pension, in 2022 dollars. The need for all other pension funds, and hence actuaries, would plummet. This explains why ten top Canadian actuaries, including our Chief Actuary, when queried by me, all denied the obvious massive surplus with ridiculous arguments. One honest top actuary stated that our Chief Actuary “controls the narrative and hides things at will”.

3. The unprofitable media industry, according to several media experts, has sacrificed integrity for profit. They have refused to publish one word on the CPP’s surplus, likely because of “incentives” from the financial industry. For example, $100 million, is less than 1/1000th of the financial industry’s annual profits. Conversely, $100 million would be of great interest to floundering media companies and needy politicians. Experts on Canadian democracy state bribery is rampant in Canadian politics. Ms. Freeland and ex-Bank of Canada Governor, Mark Carney, have both written books that claim our capitalist system is rigged to favour the super-rich. The media, including the CBC, is complicit in selective news coverage, and Mr. Poilievre knows it.

 A story on the CPP’s surplus and potential is obviously newsworthy. However, only a respected international publication, The Economist, has ever reported on it. In January 2019, The Economist wrote,

“The fund’s portfolio size has more than tripled over the past decade and is going to become only more gigantic.”

And since the article was published, our CPP fund has increased by another $190 billion.

The CBC cannot claim they were unaware of the CPP’s surplus and potential. Over one year ago, I submitted the above details to the CBC Ombudsman, CBC Marketplace and Brodie Fenlon, CBC Editor-in-Chief. I received no response, and nothing was published.

Imagine the impact if the CBC published a story with content that stated:

“The CPP has a $257 billion surplus which means 17 million Canadians deserve $10,000 each, on average. This would also lead to an increase in almost all business profits of 20%, and much more.”

Such a story would put immense pressure on politicians to legislate CPP reform. With 99% of Canadians wanting these benefits and no danger to future CPP pensions, CPP reform would be impossible for any MP to refuse. By publishing such a story, the CBC could then claim responsibility for bringing these huge benefits to Canadians and Canada. The attitude of Canadians might change from

“Defund the CBC”

to

“Double the CBC’s budget.”

Mr. Poilievre is likely aware of the CPP’s surplus and potential to solve many of Canada’s problems, as shown in his reply below to my email with the above details.

The CBC’s failure to cover the CPP may act as ammunition for him to win the next election. His platform may soon be:

“I will defund the CBC because their failure to cover the CPP is costing 17 million Canadians $10,000 each, and much more. I will also legislate CPP reform that will bring almost all Canadians and Canada huge benefits including (See details above).”

Canadians are somewhat angry as they learn the CBC now costs them each $34 per year. However, when they learn the CBC’s failure in coverage is really costing them $10,000 each, almost 300 times as much, virtually every Canadian will become understandably furious.

What is even more insidious? Most Canadians wrongly presume the CBC, because we pay them, “has our back”. We naively believe “our” trusted CBC will report anything that the selfish private sector media has omitted.

There are more reasons that the future of the CBC is in jeopardy. Through my efforts, possibly millions of Canadians are learning about the CPP’s surplus and their deserved $10,000 surplus payment. Because our entire Canadian media will not cover the CPP’s $257 billion surplus, I have exercised my right to freedom of speech.

Firstly, I have probably reached thousands of businesses and their millions of employees regarding this cover-up. Consider the one million businesses in Canada NOT in the financial industry. If the CPP released $170 billion to Canadians, every business would increase their profit by roughly 20% in year one and 5% in subsequent years. Most business presidents spend their entire day trying to increase profits by 1%. This is fully explained here .

I have emailed 200 Canadian Chamber of Commerce chapters, all Canadian Business Council offices and all Canadian Board of Trade offices, the above details, with the title

“Business Professor shows why all Canadian businesses should be enjoying a 20% profit increase.”

The Chamber, the Business Councils and the Board of Trade are paid to help increase business profits and stimulate our economy. They have been encouraged to investigate the CPP and then forward the email to the hundreds of thousands of businesses that they represent so business CEOs can judge for themselves.

In turn, the CEOs have been encouraged to forward the email to their millions of employees who each deserve $10,000, and much more. Such forwarding is likely because CEOs want their employees to receive $10,000 each for both selfish and altruistic reasons. And they know their employees will eagerly join the fight for CPP reform.

Secondly, I have contacted 27 local CARP offices across Canada with details describing why their 330,000 members deserve $10,000 each from the CPP’s surplus. Volunteer directors of each office, concerned for their members’ wellbeing, have been encouraged to forward the details to all their individual members.

Tragically, every year, 300,000 seniors die, never seeing their deserved $10,000 share of the CPP’s surplus. Roughly 100,000 are low-income, barely existing near the poverty line of roughly $21,000 per year. A $10,000 payment could do wonders for their quality of life and longevity.

If you or I stole $100 from a helpless, low-income person, it would be considered outrageous. There are two million seniors now existing near the poverty line. Your actions are keeping roughly $10,000 each, $20 billion in total, from them. Mathematically, this is 200 million times as outrageous.

My next email to all business organizations and CARP chapters will include details about how the CBC has abandoned them by not publishing details about the CPP’s surplus and potential.

With…

• Mr. Poilievre’s desire to “defund the CBC”,

• Mr. Poilievre’s knowledge of the CPP’s surplus, which could win millions of votes for him,

• Mr. Poilievre’s implication that he cannot be bribed by lobbyists,

• Millions of Canadians already agreeing to defund the CBC,

• Millions more Canadians gradually learning that the CBC’s veto on CPP coverage is costing them 300 times the $34 per year that they think the CBC costs them,

• One million businesses missing a 20% profit increase because of CBC’s coverage failure,

…the CBC’s continued generous funding, and even existence, is unlikely.

As the head of CBC, you have obviously made some unwritten agreement with the Liberals and/or the financial industry to not cover the CPP’s surplus. If you defied this agreement, you could probably

• help bring the deserved benefits described above to Canadians and Canada,

• increase CBC funding,

• maintain the employment of 8,000 CBC employees, probably with a raise in pay,

• fulfil what Canadians perceive as your job description,

• protect yourself from probable upcoming devastating scrutiny. (See below.)

You may want to act quickly. If Mr. Poilievre announces details of the CPP’s surplus before the CBC, Canadians will conclude:

“Where was the CBC? Let’s defund them as useless.”

On behalf of 17 million Canadians and one million Canadian businesses, I urge you to publish a series of comprehensive stories on the CPP’s status and potential to solve many of Canada’s problems. I suspect that roughly 8,000 CBC employees, many soon facing unemployment, would heartily agree. Suggested story themes are here.

By publishing these stories, the CBC could shed its image of an expensive, more-of-the-same, unnecessary broadcaster. It could vault to being a trusted newscaster that is Canadians’ watchdog, monitoring the “gatekeepers” (including you and our disgraceful Chief Actuary) on behalf of all Canadians. And the image of CBC executives could climb sharply from Canada’s villains to Canada’s saviours.

By not publishing these stories, you may want to prepare yourself for an uncomfortable inquiry,  either demanded by the Canadian taxpayer or initiated by Prime Minister Poilievre . The key questions could be

“Why did you not publish anything regarding the CPP’s surplus when such a story would bring billions of dollars to millions of deserving Canadians, huge benefits to the Canadian economy and survival/kudos for the CBC?

Did you receive any cash for vetoing these stories? We will be investigating all your communications and your bank accounts.

Did you receive any incentives from either the financial industry or the Liberal Party to not publish these stories?

Two thirds of low-income seniors are female. You have abandoned them. And the CBC has published stories claiming Mr. Poilievre is a misogynist. Meanwhile, six male bank presidents are the “head of the snake” in this cover-up. It appears you, a female, are the true misogynist. Please defend yourself.”

I apologize for my aggressive comments, but I feel I am defending the rights of millions of abused Canadians. For most, the CPP holds 10% of their lifetime earnings. If you can convince me that your decision to publish nothing about the CPP’s $257 billion surplus is the right one, I will issue a full apology. I await your response.

Much more detail and proof of the above is at my website, www.fixthecpp.ca. This letter can be found at www.fixthecpp.ca/cbc-defund-or-double-fund .

Sincerely,

Ross Macnaughton

Professor emeritus

Ryerson University (aka TMU)

 P.S. If you are a CBC employee, I suggest you and your colleagues bombard Ms. Tait with this email prefaced with comments like

 “I need employment. Please do your job. Stop abandoning Canada. The jig is up.”

 If you want to understandably remain anonymous, you may want to:

• create an anonymous email address and send this email with your comments to Ms. Tait,

• print your thoughts and send them unsigned to Ms. Tait via interoffice mail,

• encourage your non-CBC friends and associates to shame Ms. Tait into acting appropriately.

If thousands of disgusted Canadians email her, she is more likely to act on our behalf.