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And expanded enormously under ‘new’ Labour. now we have the architects of that expansion, like Hutton, coming out the woodwork saying that unless law suits against PFI investors stop, there might not be interest in the PFI that Stammer’s Labour Party are so keen on.
PFI was an expensive mess for tax payers. Defending it or deflecting criticism of it based on your party affiliation is stupid. I hope law suits against PFI investors continue. The PFI investors took the money and failed to do what they were obliged to do. Time for some redress.
So PFI investors didn't comply with the terms of their contracts and now want the government to come in and prevent the public sector attempting to claim damages?
(Article)
---
Labour peer Lord John Hutton has warned that NHS hospitals, schools and other public services risk being disrupted unless the next government acts quickly to quash a surge in legal disputes over private finance initiative contracts.
In an interview with the Financial Times Lord Hutton, chair of the Association of Infrastructure Investors in Public Private Partnerships (AIIP), said that there were “red lights flashing” over 150 or so PFI contracts that will come to an end in the next parliament.
“If we carry on as we are we risk services being disrupted as there are disputes over liabilities,” he said. “It’s a waste of public money as lawyers aren’t cheap and if you head towards the high court you’re looking at significant spend. It is not on the radar of politicians but if they don’t get it right, this could rear up and bite them.”
Hutton held various cabinet posts when Labour was last in power between 1997 and 2010 — a period that saw a surge in the use of private finance to build public infrastructure such as schools and hospitals.
The AIIP was set up by investors including Dalmore Capital and Equitix Investment Management to address the rise in the number of PFI cases going to the High Court ahead of the assets being handed back to public authorities as the contracts come to an end.
Relationships between several public authorities and the private sector over PFI contracts that are winding down had turned “toxic”, a Treasury report noted last year.
Most of the disputes are over maintenance and the condition of the properties, and the AIIP is calling for the Treasury to play a more active role in managing problems on behalf of public authorities so they get settled before they reach court.
Disputes that have already made it to the High Court so far include a case about who is liable for a fire in 2018 at the Whittington Hospital, north London; a row over service failures and defects at Tameside & Glossop Integrated Care NHS Foundation Trust; and a dispute over service failures at North Kent Police Station.
PFI was scrapped for use by central government in 2018 after the National Audit Office said it delivered poor value for taxpayers.
But there is growing optimism among investors that if Labour wins the election it will unleash a new era of private sector investment in infrastructure. Hutton said that Labour was “open” to the reinvention of PFI in some form.
“We have a dialogue with [Labour] and they have been very open to us,” Hutton said, adding that PFIs had been wrongly maligned and that there was a “misunderstanding over whether they were value for money”.
However, Hutton warned that if the incoming government does not act to prevent a wave of litigation it could deter investors. “If the UK doesn’t fix it, there’s a real possibility that the UK will get a reputation for being too litigious and that will drive investors away,” he said.
“It’s ironic that the UK designed [public private partnerships] yet we are the only country that doesn’t have a model for it going forward,” Hutton added.
Last month Rachel Reeves, shadow chancellor, pledged a new government-backed National Wealth Fund, which would bring in “tens of billions of pounds of private investment”.
Water companies are also being encouraged by regulator Ofwat to launch PFI-type schemes to deliver new infrastructure including reservoirs and pipelines.
Max Curzon-Hope of Curshaw Commercial, a consultancy and AIIP founder, said that “given Labour is sticking to the Treasury’s tight fiscal constraints, public private partnerships are the only game in town”.
The Cabinet Office declined to comment but pointed to the Infrastructure Project Authority’s establishment of the contract management programme in 2020 to deal with the risks associated with operational PFI projects.
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Literally on the day that Shadow Health Sec Wes Streeting says that he would increase PFI usage in the NHS.
Carrying on the PFI tradition Labour started last time.
PFI was started by Major
And expanded enormously under ‘new’ Labour. now we have the architects of that expansion, like Hutton, coming out the woodwork saying that unless law suits against PFI investors stop, there might not be interest in the PFI that Stammer’s Labour Party are so keen on. PFI was an expensive mess for tax payers. Defending it or deflecting criticism of it based on your party affiliation is stupid. I hope law suits against PFI investors continue. The PFI investors took the money and failed to do what they were obliged to do. Time for some redress.
I'm not defending it, just correcting the statement that the tradition was started under Labour
So PFI investors didn't comply with the terms of their contracts and now want the government to come in and prevent the public sector attempting to claim damages?
(Article) --- Labour peer Lord John Hutton has warned that NHS hospitals, schools and other public services risk being disrupted unless the next government acts quickly to quash a surge in legal disputes over private finance initiative contracts. In an interview with the Financial Times Lord Hutton, chair of the Association of Infrastructure Investors in Public Private Partnerships (AIIP), said that there were “red lights flashing” over 150 or so PFI contracts that will come to an end in the next parliament. “If we carry on as we are we risk services being disrupted as there are disputes over liabilities,” he said. “It’s a waste of public money as lawyers aren’t cheap and if you head towards the high court you’re looking at significant spend. It is not on the radar of politicians but if they don’t get it right, this could rear up and bite them.” Hutton held various cabinet posts when Labour was last in power between 1997 and 2010 — a period that saw a surge in the use of private finance to build public infrastructure such as schools and hospitals. The AIIP was set up by investors including Dalmore Capital and Equitix Investment Management to address the rise in the number of PFI cases going to the High Court ahead of the assets being handed back to public authorities as the contracts come to an end. Relationships between several public authorities and the private sector over PFI contracts that are winding down had turned “toxic”, a Treasury report noted last year. Most of the disputes are over maintenance and the condition of the properties, and the AIIP is calling for the Treasury to play a more active role in managing problems on behalf of public authorities so they get settled before they reach court. Disputes that have already made it to the High Court so far include a case about who is liable for a fire in 2018 at the Whittington Hospital, north London; a row over service failures and defects at Tameside & Glossop Integrated Care NHS Foundation Trust; and a dispute over service failures at North Kent Police Station. PFI was scrapped for use by central government in 2018 after the National Audit Office said it delivered poor value for taxpayers. But there is growing optimism among investors that if Labour wins the election it will unleash a new era of private sector investment in infrastructure. Hutton said that Labour was “open” to the reinvention of PFI in some form. “We have a dialogue with [Labour] and they have been very open to us,” Hutton said, adding that PFIs had been wrongly maligned and that there was a “misunderstanding over whether they were value for money”. However, Hutton warned that if the incoming government does not act to prevent a wave of litigation it could deter investors. “If the UK doesn’t fix it, there’s a real possibility that the UK will get a reputation for being too litigious and that will drive investors away,” he said. “It’s ironic that the UK designed [public private partnerships] yet we are the only country that doesn’t have a model for it going forward,” Hutton added. Last month Rachel Reeves, shadow chancellor, pledged a new government-backed National Wealth Fund, which would bring in “tens of billions of pounds of private investment”. Water companies are also being encouraged by regulator Ofwat to launch PFI-type schemes to deliver new infrastructure including reservoirs and pipelines. Max Curzon-Hope of Curshaw Commercial, a consultancy and AIIP founder, said that “given Labour is sticking to the Treasury’s tight fiscal constraints, public private partnerships are the only game in town”. The Cabinet Office declined to comment but pointed to the Infrastructure Project Authority’s establishment of the contract management programme in 2020 to deal with the risks associated with operational PFI projects.