Warning message

Please note that this page is from our archives. There may be more up-to-date content about this topic on our website. Use our search engine to find out.

The Quebec governments P3 juggernaut has hit a bump with the rejection of a P3 to relocate a long-term care facility in Qub0065c City. The relocation comes as part of a merger of the Rs0069dence Saint-Charles with two other homes providing care for seniors. The board overseeing the homes has decided to keep the new facility public, bypassing a proposed P3.

Opponents of the P3 include CUPE, which represents workers at the Rs0069dence Saint-Charles. They would have liked the authority to explicitly reject P3s, something the board didnt do. But the P3 option was clearly a bad deal and CUPE made sure everyone knew it.

CUPE uncovered a government-commissioned study showing the facility would cost $14.4 million more as a P3 than as a public project. The study, obtained under Access to Information, showed if the facility was built and operated as a P3, each of the homes 132 beds would cost $110,000 more over the life of the 25-year deal. Extend that to the provinces plans to build between 3,000 and 5,000 long-term care spaces as P3s, and the added costs of private sector involvement would have ballooned to $550 million.

The decision of the Centre de sant 0065t de services sociaux Qub0065c-Sud isnt the last word. A regional agency overseeing health and social services will weigh in before the provincial ministry responsible has the final say.