|
|
|
Consultation launched on Scottish Futures Trust |
|
|
|
Thursday, 20 December 2007 |
A new way of funding schools, hospitals and other large-scale infrastructure projects has taken a step forward with the launch of a consultation on the Scottish Futures Trust.
The trust, which has been proposed by the Scottish Government as an alternative to the controversial private finance initiative, would take the form of an incorporated company. It would provide private finance and other services to public service providers and then recycle any surplus money for the benefit of the community.
Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Sustainable Growth John Swinney said the trust would provide a better deal for taxpayers by combining opportunities for maximising investment levels and reducing costs.
"Efficient investment in Scotland's infrastructure is needed to create a more successful country, through increasing sustainable economic growth,” said Swinney.
"The Scottish Government believes there is a more effective way of funding our vital public infrastructure than traditional costly PFI.”
A non-profit distributing (NPD) model had already been introduced for schools and health projects, he added.
"By placing NPD principles at the core of the new arrangements for the Scottish Futures Trust, we can finally remove the element of PFI that delivered the most extreme and unwarranted profits," he said.
The consultation will run until March 14, 2008.
One person has commented on this article. 1. Consultation launched on Scottish Futures Trust
Chris, Unregistered What is different from PFI? A private company (or more likely a number of them) design, build, own and operate our public services. Exactly the same. Still more costly than public borrowing, still not owned by the people who pay for it - us!
This is not what the SNP promised, and is simply payback for the private sector.
|
Featured sites
The Open University
The Open University is the UK's largest university, attracting more than 200,000 students each year. It is a world leader in open and distance learning and has been recognised for the excellence of its teaching and the world-class reputation of its research.
Click here to visit this site
Site news...
This website has been tested as working under Firefox, and Internet Explorer 6 and 7. Although the website will work in any of these browsers, users of Internet Explorer may experience some visual distortion due to the browser lacking support for widely accepted open standards.
We apologise for any inconvenience this may cause, and will endeavour to ensure that the site will deliver its content irrelevant of browser choice.
We strongly encourage users to install the Firefox web browser, as it is both standards-compliant and free software.
Please click here to visit the Firefox home page.
|
|
|
Holyrood news 
