There were three interesting stories in the press this week about pensions and bankruptcy in Canada.

On Wednesday the CBC ran a story on how the Liberals vow to change bankruptcy laws. Here’s a quote from the story:

The Liberal Party says it is committed to changing Canadian bankruptcy laws so former employees of failed companies like Nortel don’t lose their pensions and disability benefits when their employer goes bust.

“You gotta know that I’m hearing you loud and clear — the Bankruptcy Act must be changed,” Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff told Nortel pensioners at a rally on Parliament Hill Wednesday.

Ignatieff said his party will be meeting Monday to discuss new proposals for the pension system. Liberals are committed to changing bankruptcy laws “so that you are not left at the back of queue in insolvency and bankruptcy,” Ignatieff said. “It’s not right; we agree with you.”

The basic point being made by Mr. Ignatieff is that it’s possible for a company to go bankrupt, and as a result workers can lose their pensions. He uses Nortel as an example, a once proud Canadian company that is now bankrupt.

The second story was written by David Olive, in the Toronto Star, and he took the opposite view: Pension Crisis: Not So Fast. He makes the point that Canadians have many sources of retirement income, including company pensions, and the Canada Pension Plan, and RRSPs. Outside experts have determined, in fact, that Canadians have pension protection as good or better than anyone else in the world.

In the third story the Globe and Mail discusses the Illusion of Pension Security in Canada, and makes the point that only 30% of Canadians have employer sponsored defined benefit pensions, so the “pension crisis” is nothing new.

So which view is correct? Should Canada’s bankruptcy laws be changed, or are we on the right track?

Click here to read the full article on Bankruptcy Canada web site.