Has socially responsible investing had an impact on pension investment in B.C.?
That’s difficult to say because that’s not something we monitor directly. We hear anecdotally about various pension plans who’s trustees have looked at socially responsible investing. I understand there are some plans that have established pilot programs in that area. We will be interested in what comes out of those pilots but it’s not something we monitor on a plan-by-plan basis. What impact might the tax-free savings account have on retirement savings? It’s too early to tell right now. It will be interesting when that comes into effect next year. Having said that, B.C. is moving forward in some areas of increased flexibility for those who are in existing plans. We recently passed legislation that permits pension plans to offer phased retirement. We hope that this change will help provide more flexibility and more options in the workforce. Would B.C. support the creation of a national financial services regulator? We’ve made some progress on the securities side with the passport syste
