That EI panel: who hired these guys, anyway?

In Budget 2008, the federal government created the Canada Employment Insurance Financing Board (CEIFB) -- a new Crown corporation to handle the Employment Insurance fund.

For years, the Conservatives -- among many others -- complained that the Liberal government used EI premiums to balance the books.

By putting EI contributions into General Revenues it meant any surplus in funds at the end of the year was just tacked on to the government's bottom line.

To end this "theft," as it was repeatedly called, the Canada Employment Insurance Financing Board was created to do three things:

• Manage a separate EI account and make sure the funds are well invested
• Maintain a $2-billion cash reserve, a rainy-day fund
• Make recommendations for premiums increases/decreases
  

So far:

• the bank account is in deficit, so there's no money to invest
  
• there is no rainy-day fund, and..
  
• after three years of a government mandated EI premium freeze, Finance Minister Jim Flaherty announced today what the premium increases will be for the next "few years."
  

Although, Flaherty insists the CEIFB will continue to exist...