When Premier Alison Redford launched Alberta's Social Policy Framework on Feb. 28, she touted the province's new approach to taking care of residents as a way to “reduce inequality, protect vulnerable people, enable collaboration and partnerships, and create a person-centred system of high quality services.”
Closer to home, some expressed concern that the fresh take on social services was a step towards privatization that could adversely affect the most vulnerable groups.
“They're getting out of regulation and the provision of services,” said Innisfail resident Tera Dahl-Lang, chair of the social work diploma program at Red Deer College. “For-profit services would be the preferred delivery method for government and the government would have no liability.”
The framework was developed following 400 “discussions” in communities, electronic surveys, blog postings, and collaborative work on a wiki site. Last month Redford also announced the province wants to create “social infrastructure bonds” to back projects.
Dahl-Lang says the words “social” and “bonds” may give the promise a positive ring, but she notes Redford is not referring to a concept of social togetherness but actual debt securities. This would put non-profit services in the hands of self-interested investors.
“It's a way of the government distancing itself from responsibility,” she said. “If you privatize services you're going to call the business owner. If it goes to the social impact bonds, who are you going to call – the shareholders?”
Brenda Joyce, acting chair of the Big Brothers/Big Sisters of Innisfail, says while she appreciates the collaborative nature by which the government developed the framework, she stresses the government's new approach to non-profit service delivery adds a whole lot of uncertainty into the system.
“What is always a concern is where funding comes from,” she said. “Non-profits have to compete more and more for dollars that are out there.”
As the government strives to bring elements of the free-market system into the social sector Joyce says it can be hard to predict just how significantly at-risk populations will be affected.
“It's really difficult,” she said. “Typically what happens is it's the vulnerable populations that do experience this in the biggest way.”
Enola Nygren, coordinator of the Innisfail Family Day Home Society acknowledges the new social policy framework will cause a shift in the social services sector, and says she will wait to see in just what way.
“There will be a change,” she said. “We do communicate as a field. We will all wait to see what the outcome is.”
