MVNHS@ News

NHS hospital trusts to pay out further £55bn under PFI scheme.
Some are spending one-sixth of their entire budget on repaying debts from misguided Blair-era policy https://t.co/jxd8CdrFgr @zoesqwilliams @hilarypepper @paulmasonnews @george_gillett pic.twitter.com/YPvNwoUGQ1

— Peter Tatchell (@PeterTatchell) September 15, 2019

Well, that’ll happen when you’re diverting over 16% of your current budget to cover shortfalls that were baked into the cake 20 years ago.

And just what was that “secret ingredient?”

So glad you asked:

The “private finance initiative” is actually a fairly efficient mechanism when costs can be controlled:

“(PFI) is a way of financing public sector projects through the private sector. PFIs alleviate the government and taxpayers of the immediate burden of coming up with the capital for these projects.”

Shorter: Kicking the can down the road.

Eventually, of course, all that money (plus interest) needs to be repaid, and if one hasn’t been careful with cost control, well, that’s the pickle in which the Brits now find themselves.

Lest we on this side of The Pond feel tempted to gloat, however, let’s stop to consider the impact that MedicaidForAll is likely to have. After all, that’s a perfect example of a PFI.

[Hat Tip: FoIB Holly R]