This morning the CCPA released a new report (co-authored by yours truly) that looks at the thorny issue of health care reform in BC and identifies some practical, evidence-based strategies that have been successful in improving quality of care and controlling costs in other jurisdictions. The paper comes out at a time when all Canadian [...]
Entries Tagged as 'Transparency & accountability'
A prescription for health care reform: think integration & collaboration
January 16th, 2012 · Iglika Ivanova · 1 Comment · Health care, Provincial budget & finance, Transparency & accountability
Tags: BC·health care
BC government claims new power over personal information. Public comment sidelined.
November 9th, 2011 · Keith Reynolds · Comments Off · Transparency & accountability
The BC government has a lot of personal information about you. Legislation passed last month means the government can do a lot more with it. The legislation passed without the public consultation demanded last year by the Information and Privacy Commissioner. In 2010 a legislative committee undertook a review of Freedom of Information and Protection [...]
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The Union of BC Municipalities Convention: a potpourri of policy
October 2nd, 2011 · Keith Reynolds · Comments Off · Economy, Employment & labour, Environment, resources & sustainability, Housing & homelessness, Municipalities, Privatization, P3s & public services, Provincial budget & finance, Taxes, Transparency & accountability
For people who follow local policy issues the annual meeting of the Union of BC Municipalities (UBCM) is always chock-a-block with material. Last week’s meeting in Vancouver, which saw hundreds of mayors and councilors along with most of the Cabinet, much of the BC opposition and dozens of groups selling both items and ideas, was [...]
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Will the “Jobs Plan” just add to the government trust deficit?
September 24th, 2011 · Keith Reynolds · Comments Off · Economy, Provincial budget & finance, Transparency & accountability
There has been some very good analysis written about the details of this week’s roll out of the BC Liberal government’s “Jobs Plan.” A number of pieces are on this site. Marc Lee and Iglika Ivanova had an excellent column in the Sun. Instead of commenting on the policy thrust, however, I would like to [...]
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The real impact of HST’s defeat on provincial finances
September 9th, 2011 · Iglika Ivanova · 16 Comments · Economy, Provincial budget & finance, Taxes, Transparency & accountability
On Sept 8, Finance Minister Kevin Falcon released a much anticipated update on provincial finances. The Minster’s presentation focused on highlighting the cost of the move back to PST/GST, providing some large numbers for the media headlines, instead of looking at the big picture. In case you missed the media coverage, the provincial coffers are [...]
Public private partnerships under increasing attack in the UK
August 19th, 2011 · Keith Reynolds · 2 Comments · Privatization, P3s & public services, Transparency & accountability
While British Columbia continues to invest billions in public private partnerships(P3s), a UK Parliamentary Committee today told its government to “wean itself off the practice.” The Treasury Select Committee found: We have not seen clear evidence of savings and benefits in other areas of PFI projects which are sufficient to offset this significantly higher cost of [...]
What’s behind the push for a municipal auditor general?
August 12th, 2011 · Keith Reynolds · 1 Comment · Taxes, Transparency & accountability
The call for the creation of an Auditor General for BC’s municipalities almost seems like a “no-brainer,” doesn’t it? Charlie Smith had a good article in the Georgia Straight outlining reasons why a municipal AG would be a good idea. Some people, in some municipalities have had problems with transparency. And while the Province does [...]
Public consultation down the drain as government comes to fracking industry’s aid
August 3rd, 2011 · Ben Parfitt · Comments Off · Economy, Energy, Environment, resources & sustainability, First Nations & Aboriginal, Transparency & accountability
It has been a year since word began to percolate in the Hudson’s Hope area that Talisman Energy Inc. was eying the Williston Reservoir a short distance east of town as a long-term source of water for use in developing its gas resources. Yet in the intervening months – months in which local residents watched [...]
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What would Stanley say about Brigette Marcelle?
June 4th, 2011 · Keith Reynolds · 11 Comments · Electoral reform, Transparency & accountability
For the last 30 years or so when confronted with a thorny issue I have often asked myself this question: what would Stanley say? This is the lens I would like to apply to Brigette Marcelle’s actions in the Senate last week. Marcelle is the young Senate page who during the Speech from the Throne [...]
Suspicion about private finance schemes growing in the UK
June 2nd, 2011 · Keith Reynolds · 5 Comments · Privatization, P3s & public services, Transparency & accountability
On May 16th British Columbia’s Auditor General published a report on Vancouver General Hospital P3 that raised serious doubts about public private partnerships in British Columbia. In the UK, where P3s have been around a lot longer, the doubts are getting even graver. Under P3s, or private finance initiative (PFI) as they are known in [...]
