“We met with Minister Duncan that night as well and he was so adamant he wasn’t going to do anything for us,” he said.
“McGuinty said he’d have a re-look at it and that was our saving grace. I think if we had not had that meeting we’d not be in the position we’re in right now.”
Sproule credited Duncan and finance officials with allowing the pensioners’ “good arguments” to win the day.
“Certainly there was politics involved (in the decision),” he said. “But the minister said we presented good facts. … They also had a better understanding of what we were talking about.”
It is unclear how the decision will affect the thousands of Nortel pensioners outside Ontario.
Sproule said those details are among the many yet to be worked out.
He added, however, that he expects many provinces would follow Ontario’s lead and allow their pensioners to choose between the two options.
Keywords: pension, private
