“The theory is that PFI should incentivise the private sector to deliver good quality buildings on time and to the price agreed with the public sector. The results of our census show that this is being achieved in central government.”
“There are a number of lessons that other departments can learn from the problems that the Lord Chancellor’s Department has experienced with the Libra project. Departments should take it as a warning sign that their proposed PFI projects may not be workable if few bidders show initial interest and others withdraw as the procurement process continues. In a single tender situation, Departments need to take special care to safeguard value for money, for example by developing a should cost model to assess the reasonableness of a bid. Up to date contingency plans should be in place on all major contracts so that there is a fallback position if and when a contract goes wrong.”
“This is a good example of a public sector body acting quickly and taking risks that were well thought through and which paid off in providing real patient benefits. This report contains important recommendations for the Department of Health which will help it replicate this success and encourage innovation more widely.”
“I welcome the new arrangements which the OGC has introduced. They should put the public sector in a much better position to share with the private sector the benefits which refinancing can bring to a PFI project. But this is a complex area and departments will need to become more expert in this topic to enable them to manage the new arrangements effectively.”
” MOD expects to secure significant benefits from this PFI deal which will help its accommodation arrangements in London. This was a large and complex project and my report sets out a number of important learning points relevant to other PFI deals under development.”
“The Ministry of Defence is to be congratulated on its success in establishing the new College. Its success demonstrates the benefits of departments showing clear direction and strong leadership when managing change. The College is at the forefront of good practice in its methods for evaluating training and benchmarking, with a strategy that will be of interest to other public sector training bodies.”
“As PFI deals are long term arrangements it is essential that authorities and contractors work together as partners to achieve successful outcomes.
“The main elements of a successful relationship between the public and private sectors are to adopt a partnership approach supported by the right contractual framework, to have the right skills mix present at the right time, and to make the partnership work in practice.
“My report will help both authorities and contractors to achieve good relationships on PFI projects to assist the delivery of public services procured under the PFI.”
The Inland Revenue, when required to make major enhancements to its national insurance computer system (NIRS 2) to accommodate significant legislative changes, decided to award a contract extension to Accenture, its existing supplier. And, according to a report from the National Audit Office, published today, the contract extension: offered better value for money than the … Read more
Sir John Bourn, Head of the National Audit Office, told Parliament today that the funding competition used to finance the refurbishment of the Treasury building in Whitehall saved the taxpayer £13 million. The competition resulted in savings of 7% of the cost of the deal over the lifetime of the project and assisted greatly in … Read more
“It is apparent that, faced with a range of complex issues, the Department handled negotiations with LCR in a competent manner. The financing of the restructured project is fundamentally different to that envisaged in 1996, and so is the distribution of risks between the various parties now involved. There are a number of important lessons here for future PPPs, along with some specific points for the Department”.
