The Institute for Social Research presents a seminar on
PUBLIC/PRIVATE PARTNERSHIPS: ARE THEY WORTH THE TROUBLE?
6.30 pm - 8.00 pm, TUESDAY 16 JULY 2002
New International Bookshop Meeting Room
Trades Hall, cnr Victoria and Lygon Sts, Carlton (enter via Victoria St
steps)
Admission by donation
Speakers:
Christopher Sheil, University of New South Wales
PPPs: What's the Trouble?
David Hayward, Executive Director, ISR
PPPs: Are They Worth It?
Royce Millar, Freelance Journalist
PPPs: Why They Might Make the News
They're red hot in the UK, and they're starting to get attention here,
thanks to the enthusiastic support of the Bracks Labor government in
Victoria. PPPs are the latest fad in public sector management, involving
deals brokered between governments and private companies to deliver
infrastructure and public services. A developer might build and maintain a
school, while the teachers and students are provided by governments. In
theory, this allows the government to focus on service delivery, while
allowing the private sector to deliver the efficiency gains that its famous
for. A third way of doing things that seems sensible and pragmatic? Who
could object to that?
But there is growing concern that, rather than being a better way, PPPs are
simply another form of privatisation. The private sector takes the profits,
while the public sector carries the risks. In the UK, they're hot because
they're highly controversial and unpopular. Here, they're new and yet to be
tested.
Are they worth the trouble?
Christopher Sheil is a former project leader for the Evatt Foundation. A
columnist for the 'Australian Financial Review', he has written widely on
public policy and economics. His publications include: 'Turning Point: The
State of Australia' (ed.) (Allen & Unwin 1997); 'Water's Fall: Running the
Risks with Economic Rationalism' (Pluto 2000) and 'Globalisation: Australian
Impacts' (UNSW Press 2001).
David Hayward is a well-known commentator on state politics and the budget,
and writes regular opinion pieces for the 'Age'.
David Hudson
Institute for Social Research
Swinburne University of Technology
03 9214 5615
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