By Armchair Mayor

NDP’s plan to boss public infrastructure projects could be costly

Jul 18, 2018 | 7:00 AM

KAMLOOPS — YOU REALLY HAD TO DIG deep to figure out the fine print in Premier John Horgan’s announcement that a new Crown corporation called B.C. Infrastructure Benefits Inc. will now oversee contracts on government projects.

The press release was all about the great things this is going to do — better training and apprenticeships, more trades opportunities for indigenous people, women and youth, and a chance to get construction jobs close to home.

There was mention of “wage alignment to prevailing industry rates” and “good wages for all,” but I couldn’t find any direct mention of the fact that B.C. will be returning to union-only labour for government projects.

However, such is the case.

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The BC Liberals, independent contractors and business groups are already shouting that this new creation will cost taxpayers more, and they sound convincing. They point out that the NDP government of the 1990s did the same thing, and the result was inflated costs.

For example, the highway expansion project on Vancouver Island came in at an estimated $70 million more because of the “fair wage policy” of the time.

This issue could easily become a union/ anti-union rant, but there’s a principle that anyone with the slightest knowledge of the competitive marketplace knows — free bidding, unencumbered by hiring restrictions or by local-first rules, save the taxpayers money.

“Hire local” policies sound good but are a failure in practice. To get the best possible bids on major projects, governments need to ignore geographical boundaries and allow free and fair bidding.

Horgan says his “new way of doing business” will apply to both the $1.4-billion Pattullo Bridge in the Lower Mainland and the $470-million four-laning of the Trans Canada east of Kamloops.

Kamloops-South Thompson MLA Todd Stone wonders whether the Royal Inland Hospital patient-care tower will come under the new procedures — seems likely it will.

I fear one of the unplanned “benefits” of the NDP’s new dictate will be time and cost over-runs.

I’m Mel Rothenburger, the Armchair Mayor.