EDMONTON--Ten years after the government of Alberta privatized the province's liquor retailing industry, the decision has proved to be a serious policy mistake. That's the conclusion of a study released today by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives and the Alberta-based Parkland Institute.
Public services and privatization
OTTAWA--Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs), while promoted as an innovative approach to the provision of public goods and services, are playing a damaging role in Ontario's universities, according to a new study by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives. For Cash and Future Considerations: Ontario Universities and Public-Private Partnerships examines the growing influence of PPPs in Ontario's public universities, particularly in infrastructure and research.
OTTAWA--Canada's public postal system is under threat at the WTO by a proposed expansion of the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS), which is being promoted by the world's largest courier companies.
Following the setback to planned negotiations on competition policy and investment suffered at last year's WTO ministerial meeting in Cancun, these companies are seeking to gain access to new markets through the expanded use of so-called "pro-competitive" rules in the GATS.
Toronto - Four prominent economists and a former director of audit operations with Canada's Auditor General released a report today that is sharply critical of controversial "public-private-partnership" (P3) hospital proposals. The report commends the new provincial government for rejecting the P3 model for public hospitals, including those planned for Brampton and Ottawa.
Since an image of honesty is an important asset for any government, it would be a mistake to pretend in the budget speech that the government has no choice but to cut program spending.
Program spending is not the cause of Nova Scotia's deficit problems, and cuts to spending are not the solution according to the inaugural publication of the Nova Scotia Branch of the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives. "A Better Way: Putting the Nova Scotia Deficit in Perspective" analyzes the size and causes of the deficit, and demonstrates that while the government's focus has been on the $767 million "fiscal crisis," the actual recurring amount is a more manageable $300 million problem