§ Mr. BlunkettTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to his answer of 22 April,Official Report, column 180, if he will make a statement on the impact on the public sector borrowing requirement of (a) the decision to relax the rules governing national health service borrowing, (b) leasing arrangements and (c) the use of private sector services by the national health service.
§ Mr. Portillo[holding answer 29 April 1993]: The rules governing the measurement of the PSBR are unchanged. When the national health service leases from the private sector, the annual lease payments are a determinant of the PSBR. Payments by the public sector, including the national health service, to the private sector for services provided also continue to be a determinant of the PSBR. Any borrowing undertaken by the private sector to finance its own spending would not count against the PSBR.
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