News

Latest News and Events

2017

2017 news and events from the European Services Strategy Unit.

2017-01-05 12:20:21

Maintaining market principles: Government auditors, PPP equity sales and hegemony: Public sector reforms, public private partnerships and whole government accounting

Article by Stewart Smyth and Dexter Whitfield in Accounting Forum journal. The UK’s government auditors, the National Audit office (NAO), play a central role in the accountability relations surrounding government expenditure. Commonly portrayed as being independent, they carry out performance audits assessing value for money. To date the emerging market for PPP equity transactions has attracted little attention. This paper explores that emerging market through a Gramscian framework utilising the concepts of ‘common sense’ and ‘good sense’, focusing on a dialogical analysis of a NAO report. Open Access download: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.accfor.2016.06.003

2016-09-14 08:22:14

PFI schools built in Scotland owned by offshore firms

An hour-long BBC television ‘Scotland Investigates’ programme on 22 August revealed evidence by Dexter Whitfield that over 80% of Scotland’s PFI schools are partly or wholly owned in offshore tax havens. The programme investigated the cause of the closure of 17 Edinburgh schools for repairs after construction defaults were found. Equity in this project had been sold 13 times. Part of the interview was on the BBC Television National 6.00pm news and was the lead item on the Scottish News. http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-37135611 A detailed ESSU Research Report on secondary market infrastructure funds will be published shortly.

2016-08-28 08:56:31

Statement to Somerset County Council on outsourcing Learning Disabilities Service

A joint UNITE Somerset and European Service Strategy Unit statement summarising the case against the planned outsourcing of the Learning Disability Service. It exposes fundamental flaws and negligent practice, which indicate the Council has not learnt the lessons of the failed PPP Strategic Partnership contract with IBM.

2016-07-15 08:47:44

Flawed PFI schools cost Edinburgh £100m too much

The additional cost of PFI for the PPP1 schools project is estimated to be £104m compared to the cost of direct provision by the City Council. Offshore infrastructure funds own a majority of equity in the special purpose company and 100 percent of equity in the PPP2 project. http://www.scotsman.com/business/flawed-schools-cost-capital-100m-too-much-say s- pfi-expert-1-4102451

2016-04-18 14:48:09

Salford Star exposes massive PFI profits at Salford Royal Hospital

A prime example of connecting the £11.5m profit from Balfour Beatty’s 50% stake in the PFI special purpose company to the HICL offshore infrastructure fund generating a 19% return; the Salford Royal NHS Foundation Trust’s forecast of a £14.9m deficit this year; a £17m PFI payment due in 2016 towards the total project cost of £705m for building works that cost £137m; and the junior doctors strike: http://salfordstar.com/article.asp?id=3190

2016-04-11 16:35:35

SERCO pays £4m after contract terminated

The New Zealand Department of Corrections took over management of Serco’s 10-year NZ$300m Mount Eden remand prison contract in 2015 after just four years. Serco has now agreed to pay £4m for the cost of state intervention and outstanding performance penalties. It is limited to a labour supply agreement at cost until 31 March 2017.

2016-04-11 15:35:32

'Why have councils fallen out of love with outsourcing vital services'

The title of an article in The Guardian (by Lizzie Presser) which draws on ESSU's database of PPP Strategic Partnerships and evidence of a high contract failure rate. Includes comments about the benefits of in-house services from leaders of Cumbria County Council, Liverpool City, the London Borough of Islington and the Local Government Association's improvement and innovation board. http://www.theguardian.com/society/2016/mar/02/councils-outsourcing-cumbria-pu blic- private-partnership-in-house

2016-03-02 10:05:31

新卫生和社会照料经济：来自英格兰西北地区的 报告

The Chinese translation of the summary report of The New Health and Social Care Economy study of Sefton MBC, Liverpool and Greater Manchester City Regions and North West regional economy – see News, July 2015. Thanks to Prof. Li Bing, Beijing.

2016-02-01 10:46:57

The Private Finance Initiative: nationalise the Special Purpose Vehicles and end profiteering from public assets

This is a radical proposal by the People vs Barts PFI campaign which has been researching and discussing ‘what to do about PFI’ for several years. The paper explains what SPVs are, how SPVs spin off private profit from public assets and proposes a mechanism for nationalising the SPVs. Proposals to strengthen the public design, project management and ‘intelligent client’ functions be strengthened in non-PFI public sector construction projects and problems with the proposal to centralise the debt are detailed in two appendices. A proposal to centralise and reduce PFI obligations contained in Part 4 of the NHS Reinstatement Bill are also examined. Access paper: https://peoplevsbartspfi.wordpress.com/2015/12/10/413/ or download pdf

2015-12-31 14:27:31