A much talked about subject on many a thread and numerous supporters :
Bill to strip prisoners of government benefits passes Senate (Link)
OTTAWA — The Harper government will soon cut off federal income supplements for imprisoned seniors after a bill, inspired by serial killer Clifford Olson, passed Tuesday in the Senate.
Olson, who turns 72 on Jan. 1, has said he would sue the government if the bill passes.
The proposed legislation is set to become law only six months after it was introduced in the Commons, prompted by news that Olson was receiving more than $1,100 a month in federal benefits while incarcerated in Quebec for the murder of 11 children in British Columbia in the early 1980s.
"It is wrong that convicted killers like Clifford Olsen were receiving taxpayers' entitlements such as Old Age Security," Human Resources Minister Diane Finley said in a news release.
About 400 senior citizens, serving sentences of two years or more in federal penitentiaries, will no longer receive monthly Old Age Security and Guaranteed Income Supplement cheques.
The government is also negotiating with the provinces to cut off benefits for inmates in provincial jails, which house offenders serving less than two years. Several provinces have already said they will follow suit.
Finley has estimated savings of about $2 million annually by ending benefits for federal prisoners, and up to $10 million once provincial prisoners are included.
Critics have said it's bad policy for the government to hastily draft legislation based on the most extreme example of an offender, such as Olson, and that stripping imprisoned seniors of financial security will make it harder for them to rejoin society if they are eventually released.
The Old Age Supplement is funded through general tax revenues and is designed to help seniors meet their immediate, basic needs in retirement.
Finley has said that there is no reason for Canadian taxpayers to fund income support for imprisoned seniors, since their food and shelter are already covered by public funds.
Prisoners, upon release, will be eligible to apply for benefits.
(Reproduced under the Fair Dealings provisions of the Copyright Act)
Bill to strip prisoners of government benefits passes Senate (Link)
OTTAWA — The Harper government will soon cut off federal income supplements for imprisoned seniors after a bill, inspired by serial killer Clifford Olson, passed Tuesday in the Senate.
Olson, who turns 72 on Jan. 1, has said he would sue the government if the bill passes.
The proposed legislation is set to become law only six months after it was introduced in the Commons, prompted by news that Olson was receiving more than $1,100 a month in federal benefits while incarcerated in Quebec for the murder of 11 children in British Columbia in the early 1980s.
"It is wrong that convicted killers like Clifford Olsen were receiving taxpayers' entitlements such as Old Age Security," Human Resources Minister Diane Finley said in a news release.
About 400 senior citizens, serving sentences of two years or more in federal penitentiaries, will no longer receive monthly Old Age Security and Guaranteed Income Supplement cheques.
The government is also negotiating with the provinces to cut off benefits for inmates in provincial jails, which house offenders serving less than two years. Several provinces have already said they will follow suit.
Finley has estimated savings of about $2 million annually by ending benefits for federal prisoners, and up to $10 million once provincial prisoners are included.
Critics have said it's bad policy for the government to hastily draft legislation based on the most extreme example of an offender, such as Olson, and that stripping imprisoned seniors of financial security will make it harder for them to rejoin society if they are eventually released.
The Old Age Supplement is funded through general tax revenues and is designed to help seniors meet their immediate, basic needs in retirement.
Finley has said that there is no reason for Canadian taxpayers to fund income support for imprisoned seniors, since their food and shelter are already covered by public funds.
Prisoners, upon release, will be eligible to apply for benefits.
(Reproduced under the Fair Dealings provisions of the Copyright Act)
