|
|
|
|
||
|
||
|
|
||
| SEARCH | SUBSCRIBE | ||
|
Imprisoned Seniors Will Lose Federal BenefitsBy Janice Tibbetts, Postmedia News
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 71 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 Human
Resource Minister Diane Finley said Canadians made it clear they were
"outraged" that imprisoned seniors receive monthly cheques from
the government. The
Canadian Taxpayers Federation collected 46,000 signatures on a petition
the group handed to Ms. Finley last spring, a month after Olson's benefits
came to light. 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. Ms.
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
say it's bad policy for the government to hastily draft legislation based
on the most extreme example of an offender, such as Olson.
|
