Gordon Brown promises to bailout PFI schemes
In hindsight it seems as though many of Gordon Brown's previous promises over last 18 months are set to come back and haunt him. Throughout this period the Prime Minister has been adamant that he was looking to not only continue with public funded projects such as school building, motorways and other such building works, but actually increase the rate at which they are to be brought online. While we have yet to see any concrete evidence that any projects have been brought forward, the cost of current projects and the ongoing viability of these has been thrown into doubt.
The schools watchdog alone has suggested that the cost of the PFI (private financial initiative) project to rebuild every secondary school in England has increased by £10 billion and is approximately 2 years behind schedule. This is only one of many PFI schemes, schemes which bring together public and private enterprises, which have increased in cost and are experiencing substantial delays. There's also the issue of banking credit which many PFI schemes are finding difficult to secure at this moment in time.
All in all, the PFI programme supported by the UK government is a potential ticking time bomb which could literally explode at any moment.
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