Transparency & accountability

Summer reading: two experts on privatization

May 20, 2010
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Policy Note has asked CCPA Research Associates who contribute to the blog to suggest some ideas for summer reading.  I am going to cheat a bit by suggesting two books.  I am going to cheat even more by admitting I haven’t read one of them. I spend a lot of my time reading and writing… View Article

Problems for the South Fraser Perimeter Road P3?

May 12, 2010
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There are some interesting recent developments on the South Fraser Perimeter Road (SFPR) public private partnership project.  A press release issued Friday afternoon announced the successful bidder in response to a Requests for Proposal.  The results may not be what we were led to expect. The SFPR project is part of the Province’s Gateway project… View Article

BC opens door to private jails

May 2, 2010
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The BC government has taken the next step down the privatization road by opening the door to private prisons.  On April 28th Partnerships BC posted a request for qualification on the BC Bid web site for a public private partnership (P3) for the Surrey Pretrial Centre. You need to register with Bid BC to see… View Article

The role of stimulus spending in the recovery

Mar 24, 2010
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Yesterday, the Fraser Institute published a new report, which argues that the government stimulus did not drive Canadian economic growth in the last two quarters of 2009, suggesting that government spending on infrastructure was useless for the economy. The report earned the scorn of Federal Finance Minister Jim Flaherty, who called it “poorly done and it’s… View Article

Victoria’s billion dollar P3 decision

Mar 16, 2010
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On March 24th the Victoria area’s Capital Regional District (CRD) is going to make a billion dollar decision.  The province has ordered the CRD to end its controversial practice of pumping raw sewage into the ocean.  But it has also ordered the CRD to consider using a public private partnership (P3) for the project. Regardless… View Article

Loukidelis did good work for government accountability. Now it’s a legislative committee’s turn.

Jan 24, 2010
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David Loukidelis, British Columbia’s Freedom of Information Commissioner has accepted the new role as the province’s deputy attorney general.  Vaughn Palmer did a good column on the switch in jobs but I thought Loukidelis deserved more credit for his ten years on the job. Personally, I think Loukidelis’s leadership was almost completely responsible for BC’s FOI legislation… View Article

AG’s office changes policy

Dec 9, 2009
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BC’s Auditor General has made an important change in the way his office does its work that will help guarantee the independence of his office. In the past, part of the money that paid for the operation of the AG’s Office came from providing contracted services to organizations like crown corporations and other agencies outside… View Article