A new study by the Parkland Institute details the devastation to
Alberta's social services sector following decades of experimentation by
the provincial Tories. The main goal of many of these initiatives was to
cut government spending on social welfare and offload provision to
anyone willing to take them on – for-profit and not-for-profit
organizations alike.
Pursuant to its mandate under Standing Order 108(2), the Committee has studied Exploring the Potential of Social Finance in Canada and has agreed to report the following.
The federal government's plan to help the private sector fund the public sector with 'social impact bonds' appeals to some cash-strapped social service agencies but worries others.
Social Impact Bonds (SIBs) as a vehicle for funding social change are gaining renewed momentum right now as U.S. Senators Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) and Michael Bennet (D- Colorado) have crafted legislation to appropriate $300 million for state and local social-impact bonds over 10 years.
On April 1, the Saskatchewan government announced that June Draude was appointed the legislative secretary responsible for expanding social impact bonds (SIB). I only wish this had been an April Fool's Day joke.
Unfortunately, the Wall government has decided to develop a casino approach to social programs. Instead of simply funding worthy social projects, the government will hand the financing over to private investors who will get paid back in full and with interest at the end of the project. The two investors in the first SIB in Saskatoon are set to earn five-per-cent interest on their investment - that's better than any rates the banks are offering.