Province ditches public-private partnership for Cape Breton health centres

HALIFAX -- The Nova Scotia government has quietly reversed its funding plans for two new health centres to be built in Cape Breton.

Transportation and Infrastructure Renewal Minister Lloyd Hines says the government will now foot the bill, instead of participating in a public-private partnership funding model.

Hines offered few details on the change of heart, saying only that a so-called traditional build will be faster for the communities of New Waterford and North Sydney.

The province issued a news release in April announcing that the new centres would be built through a public-private partnership.

The third-party NDP has long campaigned against the use of so called P-3 funding for large public infrastructure projects such as highways and hospitals.

New Democrat Leader Gary Burrill welcomed the change of plans, saying the government should do the same for the $2-billion redevelopment of the QE II Health Sciences Centre in Halifax, which is proceeding under the P-3 model.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 7, 2019.