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in Canada By John Forster, assistant deputy minister, policy and communications, Infrastructure Canada A modern, world-class public infrastructure is fundamental to Canada’s economy and environment. The country’s infrastructure is aging quickly and faces significant challenges – more than half of it is over 50 years old and another third of it is at least 80 years old. While estimates of that infrastructure gap’s cost vary, a 2003 research by McGill University puts it at $125 billion. The needs are diverse and span a number of areas, including transportation (roads, highways, public transit); water and wastewater; and sports and recreation infrastructure. Considering the magnitude of Canada’s infrastructure gap, no one level of government can address this issue alone. The Government of Canada made its first commitment to public infrastructure in 1994, creating Infrastructure Canada in 2002. It has since invested $16 billion, which has helped leverage more than $21 billion from partners. Canadian initiatives Other initiatives include the $5-billion Gas Tax Fund and the $400-million Public Transit Fund to assist municipal governments. The $4-billion Canada Strategic Infrastructure Fund was created to help address large strategic infrastructure needs beyond the capacity of any single level of government. Through this initiative, the federal government invested $350 million to help modernize the Toronto Transit Commission’s rolling stock as well as $332.5 million to expand the Red River Floodway to prevent floods. It also invested $7 million for the Northwest Territories to help them bring satellite broadband Internet to 14,000 households and over 2,500 institutions and businesses. Last March, the Government of Canada announced an unprecedented and historical 7-year, $33-billion commitment to public infrastructure in its 2007 budget. The Infrastructure Plan recognizes that infrastructure is key to driving productivity and economic growth and that a clean environment is necessary to make Canada better. In addition, it acknowledges that infrastructure is essential to strong and safe communities. The Infrastructure Plan
is divided into two components: $20-billion base funding for municipal
governments, provinces and territories and $13.3 billion for the
following four targeted programs: The Infrastructure Plan will put a new emphasis on public-private partnerships (P3s). P3s can offer advantages over traditional procurement, including providing access to new and larger sources of capital, transferring appropriate risk from the public to the private sector, and improving efficiencies. Canada is not as advanced as other nations in P3s, such as the UK and Australia. However, several provinces are moving quickly. For example, Ontario, British Columbia and Québec have all established P3 offices within the structure of their provincial governments. While there are some differences, their role in their respective jurisdictions is largely to deliver provincial projects as P3s. The federal government has also had success with P3 projects, including the Confederation Bridge, linking PEI and New Brunswick. Furthermore, Infrastructure Canada is currently funding five P3 projects, including the new transit line in Vancouver and the A-30 southern ring road around Montreal. In the 2007 budget, the federal government is committed to helping Canada become a world leader in P3s by expanding their use through the creation of a dedicated $1.26-billion P3 fund, ensuring that consideration is given to a P3 option for larger projects under other programs and by creating a federal P3 office. Canada is moving to invest significantly to build a world-class, modern, public infrastructure. Expanding the role of the private sector will be a key priority. To view the presentation, click here. |
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