Public/Private Partnerships
Debate between Baroness Wheatcroft and Lord Wilson of Sedgefield(1 week, 3 days ago)
Lords ChamberRead Full debate Read Hansard Text Read Debate Ministerial Extracts
Baroness Wheatcroft (CB)
My Lords, the Minister said that there are still some issues with PFI contracts, particularly with hospitals. Can he confirm the scale of the debt that hospitals are still burdened with because of PFI? What are the Government going to do to renegotiate those contracts and, if possible, renege on them?
Lord Wilson of Sedgefield (Lab)
There is no possibility that we are going to go back to PFI, as I said. We have learned the lessons from that. I am not quite sure about the figure of total expenditure that is out there—I think there were some 700-odd projects, of which 600 are still in progress. We are going to make sure, when we invest using public and private money, such as in neighbourhood health centres, that public money goes to the best rewards. For example, there are going to be 250 neighbourhood health centres, of which 120 are due to be completed by 2030 and all 250 will be completed by 2035. That is good news that should be celebrated.