BURNABY—If local governments opt for public private partnerships (P3s), something which is under consideration for the Capital Regional District’s new sewage treatment, they are more vulnerable to the restrictions of the Canada-United States Procurement Agreement (CUPA).

A new legal opinion by Steven Shrybman of Sack Goldblatt Mitchell says the CUPA contains temporary rules that will make it difficult for the CRD to achieve environmental protection and local economic development objectives.

Canadian reports find problems with public-private partnerships

BURNABY—Evidence is mounting that Canadian taxpayers are being sold a bill of goods with privatization.

In the past few weeks, Maureen Bader of the Canadian Taxpayers Federation has appeared twice in the Vancouver Sun calling for more cost-effective delivery of municipal services.

In the first case (Change municipal budgeting, Oct. 19), she called on municipalities to outsource all kinds of so-called "non-core services" to the private sector.

In the second (Property taxes fund municipal high rollers, Nov. 9), she called on the provincial government to step in and prevent "tax-gouging municipalities" from forcing corporations to pay taxes.

BURNABY— The BC Liberal government has been relying on seriously flawed methodology to choose public-private partnerships (P3s) over traditional financing and procurement for major capital projects, a renowned economist says in a damning review of the government’s case for P3s released today.

In August of this year, Partnerships BC—the government agency set up to promote P3s—posted on its website a document titled “Draft Discussion Paper: Methodology for Quantitative Procurement Options Analysis.” Its purpose was to provide an overview of the methodology PBC uses on behalf of its cl

Reuters News reports that a spokesperson for Fitch Ratings Agency has said U.S. state and local governments eyeing public-private partnerships, or "P3s," for infrastructure will demand tougher terms from investors amid rising concern about the tie-ups.

Idaho has turned down the idea of privatizing a jail in the community of Orofino. The Idaho Department of Corrections said in a press release they had “identified several key services provided at the Orofino prison that would need to remain under state operation reducing potential cost savings of private operation.”

Despite a big money campaign from a company that wanted a hospital privatized, the Florida legislature has voted to keep Northeast Florida State Hospital public. Senate Majority Whip Charlie Dean, an Inverness Republican who represents Baker County, called the development “wonderful.” From the Jacksonville News read more

Alberta, now Canada’s leading cheerleader for privatized schools, has decided P3 high schools are not such a good idea. There are currently 18 P3 schools under construction and more planned, but an Alberta Education spokesperson Tim Chamberlin said, with financial institutions keeping a tighter rein on credit than before, experts in the construction and finance industries “indicated smaller bundles would be needed to attract sufficient number of bids…And to some degree, proponents would have trouble obtaining financing for a full 14-school P3 bundle."

Los Angeles is looking at privatizing their parking meters for cash up front (they spent $500,000 on a study). But experience in places like Chicago demonstrates taxpayers could lose out on hundreds of millions of dollars over the life of these long contracts. See here.

Emergency resolution at union’s annual convention targets run-of-river projects in B.C.

VICTORIA— Delegates to the 46th annual convention of the Canadian Union of Public Employees, B.C. division, unanimously passed an emergency resolution today that calls for an integrated sustainable energy plan and an end to private power projects in B.C.