The Council recommends the following considerations with regard to fairness and transparency:
The Abbotsford Hospital P3 in British Columbia provides an excellent example of transparency when it comes to the Business Case and Request for Proposal process. The project website contains almost every document associated with the project, from the Business Case developed in 2000/2001 to the entire Request for Proposal document released in 2003/2004, to updates on each project milestone. This openness, combined with a sound communications plan, keep the bidding process open to the public and helps ensure stakeholder support for the project. Best practices from the UK have shown that such measures are critical during all stages of the P3 process.
The second element of note related to fairness and transparency is the delicate balance of the public's need for Freedom of Information and the private partner's need to protect proprietary know-how. Many legal advisors tell P3 proponents that they should consider any part of the contract public information. While this certainly helps both partners avoid public criticism, it may also mean that the government does not receive truly innovative proposals. One way to alleviate the private sector's reluctance to propose proprietary innovations is to reward it in the RFP process (e.g. assign it a separate value) and to provide incentives during the agreement phase (e.g. provide a greater proportion of the revenues if standards are exceeded or assets are delivered early).
In terms of efficiency, The Council recommends the following:
1) Establish a market grade proposal, through market analysis and a widespread RFEI process, before developing the RFP.
2) Recognize that a protracted and prescriptive RFP process will add undue burden to the proponents, and result in a more expensive solution. If due diligence is spent in drafting an effective RFP document up front, less time will be spent in the proposal stage and the government is more likely to get an appropriate market response. Traditionally, P3 competitions in Canada have been expensive for both the public and private sectors. Structuring the RFP to get the optimal amount of information from the proponent will help reduce some of these costs.