Privatization, P3s & public services

BC hospital P3 ownership moves to tax haven

Nov 6, 2013
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One more of British Columbia’s public private partnerships (P3s) has headed on down the road to ownership in a European tax haven.  Bilfinger Berger Global Infrastructure completed deals last summer to acquire equity and loans for the Kelowna Vernon Hospital.  It is also buying out equity and loans on Alberta’s North East Stoney Trail highway… View Article

What’s the Canada-EU trade deal all about?

Nov 4, 2013
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Chances are, you’ve heard about the Canada-EU trade deal. It’s hard to miss, what with the federal government hard at work staging photo-ops and events across the country, promoting the deal as a major win. The official sales pitch focuses on the trade aspects of the deal – lowering or eliminating tariffs between Canada and… View Article

BC governments extends outsourced health information management despite issues raised by Auditor General

Mar 11, 2013
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British Columbia’s government today announced it had extended its agreement with Maximus BC, a US subsidiary corporation, to manage BC’s health information for another five years. The $264 million contract will run from 2015 until 2020. The original contract began in 2005.  That ten year deal cost $324 million.  On a comparable basis the new five year… View Article

A new government? It’s not as easy as it looks

Feb 28, 2013
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If there is a new government in BC on May 15th, it will be confronted with issues that make the transition particularly challenging. The financial issues are a given.  Debt has gone up.  Possibly, given the economic recession we faced, it should have gone up even further.  The dramatic rise in long term contractual obligations… View Article

Making the case for public dental care

Jan 10, 2013
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There is a classic episode of the Simpsons, where Mr Burns cuts the dental plan for the nuclear power plant. With Lisa needing braces, Homer becomes a union organizer and leads a strike against the plant to get back the dental plan. I thought about that episode when had to get a root canal this week. Because… View Article

Getting it Wrong For Seniors in British Columbia

Sep 27, 2012
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Seniors and their families need and should have access to useful information when they are making critical decisions about residential care and throughout the period of residence in facilities. — BC Ombudsperson, The Best of Care: Getting It Right for Seniors in British Columbia (Part 1) Mass replacement of staff can occur when facility operators switch… View Article

The staggering future costs of the BC government’s contracts

Jul 27, 2012
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As usual, there has been quite a hubbub surrounding this week’s release of British Columbia’s Public Accounts.  The provincial auditor says the provincial deficit is $520 million more than the government admits. And then there is the Auditor General’s review of finances at the legislature that found “substantial irregularities.” But all of the above is… View Article