Collateral damage: The short and turbulent life of Quebec's agency for public-private partnerships.

This article seeks to explain the surprisingly short lifespan of the Quebec government's central unit for promoting public-private partnerships (PPPs), the Agence des partenariats public-privé du Québec (APPP). I used a theoretical framework based on neo-institutional analysis informed by empirical research including interviews with key actors, a review of all briefs submitted to the Quebec legislature and pertinent parliamentary debates, and a partial review of the media coverage. The government severely underestimated the strength of the opposition to its plan. Electoral cycles and elements of the dominant political culture in Quebec also help to explain its demise. However, the prospects for PPPs may not be as negative as the rise and fall of the APPP might suggest. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]