§ Lynne JonesTo ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the answer of 26 June 2001 to the hon. Member for Chesterfield (Paul Holmes),Official Report, column 69W, what recent studies his Department has commissioned, undertaken and reviewed concerning the use of private finance within the national health service; and whether these demonstrate that the private finance option is better value for money when compared to the publicly funded alternative. [31458]
§ Mr. HuttonThe Department internally reviews all private finance initiative projects through the business case approval system as laid out in the Department's capital investment manual. To be approved, the business case must demonstrate that, overall, the private finance option is value for money when compared to the publicly funded alternative, the public sector comparator, and that it provides improved facilities for the national health service. NHS trusts are required to monitor performance throughout the lifetime of the PFI contract.
Because of PFI, eight major new hospitals have opened and another 15 are under construction, representing capital investment in the NHS of over £2 billion.
The Department has commissioned no external studies into the use of PFI in the NHS.