National Executive Board Meeting
March 11-13, 2014
Resolution of the National Executive Board
Re: Building Canada Fund
CUPE NATIONAL WILL:
- Mobilize in opposition to ideologically motivated P3 (public-private partnership) funding for infrastructure projects to defend the rights of democratically elected municipal politicians to make infrastructure decisions that are in the best interests of their communities.
- Work with CUPE locals, the CLC, the FCM, municipal allies and our community partners to oppose the imposition of another P3 screen as part of the new Building Canada Fund.
- Write to all FCM contacts outlining the problems with the Building Canada Fund.
- Write to all CUPE municipal locals asking them to write to their locally elected politicians to encourage municipalities to pass resolutions opposing the mandatory P3 screen.
- Put our objections to this mandatory P3 screening on the record with federal and provincial governments and with the federal opposition parties.
- Highlight this issue at our booth at the FCM in June 2014.
BECAUSE:
- In the 2014 budget, the federal government announced a 10 year fund for infrastructure that municipalities can draw on but also inserted a mandatory screen that any project over $100 million requiring review by PPP Canada.
- If PPP Canada deems that such a project is best suited to be built as a P3, then the municipality will have to go the P3 route in order to qualify for federal funding.
- PPP Canada is deeply committed to promoting P3s and cannot be an impartial adjudication body that can honestly assess whether or not a project should be a public-private partnership.
- Resolution to send to municipal locals and our labour endorsed municipal elected list, with a covering letter:
The municipality of _______________ will:- Actively lobby the federal government to remove the mandatory P3 (public-private partnership) screen from the new Building Canada Fund. Municipal governments are best placed to make decisions regarding local infrastructure projects and we ask that provincial and federal governments respect our democratic decision making process.
- The municipality of ________________ will send a copy of our resolution to the federal and provincial government and will also put our objections to such mandatory P3 screening on the record with the FCM and request that the FCM lobby the federal government on this issue.
BECAUSE:
- The Building Canada Fund introduced in the 2014 budget imposes a mandatory P3 screen for all projects over $100 million. If PPP Canada deems that the project is best suited as a P3, a municipality will have no choice but to proceed as a P3 if they would like federal funding.
