Opinion: Harper is new AIMCo chair, UCP says it has nothing to do with Alberta pension
First things first. Hot off the press.
As the smart money wagered, former prime minister Stephen Harper has been appointed chair of AIMCo.
AIMCo is the Alberta Investment Management Corp.
AIMCo manages public sector pension funds and the province’s Heritage Savings Trust Fund and the Alberta Pension Plan if ever there was one.
The UCP government says it should get more than $300 billion if the province pulls out of the Canada Pension plan.
In Ottawa, the federal chief actuary has not provided a number of billions they think Alberta would receive.
But Nate Horner, the Alberta government’s finance minister, has got an indication that number is coming soon. He is hoping before Christmas.
‘We are hearing rumblings we’ll have something relatively soon,” says Horner.
“We have heard a few things back about how we can expect an interpretation fairly soon.”
So where does the Harper appointment fit in with the Alberta pension plan, an idea the former prime minister supported a generation ago?
Horner says it doesn’t. Not at all.
“There is no connection between this appointment, the changes we made at AIMCo and a potential Alberta pension plan.
“To be super-clear, we are waiting on the number from the Office of the Chief Actuary. We made it clear to Albertans we wouldn’t move a finger until we get that back and are able to consult with Albertans on what this could look like.
“I never spoke to Prime Minister Harper about it. It has nothing to do with this decision and why we think he’s the right choice.”
Horner reminds us a provincial pension plan would go to a referendum vote.
Just so you know, three members of the old AIMCo board are returning.
The old board was punted along with the AIMCo CEO and three other executives.
Horner is
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