§ Mr. McWalterTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the effect on the asset base of the NHS of the increase in the number of PFI schemes. [88641]
§ Mr. DenhamTwenty five major hospital developments, worth almost £2.5 billion, have been given approval to proceed under the private finance initiative since 1 May 1997, 13 of which, worth nearly £1 billion, have already signed final contracts and begun building. As these developments will replace outdated hospital capacity with modern facilities and equipment, no separate assessment of their impact is necessary.