Contract negotiations at two flagship hospitals due to be built under the Private Finance Initiative (PFI) have stalled. Negotiations for the £65m new hospital for North Durham Acute trust and the £90m rebuilding project for the Swindon and Marlborough trust have come unstuck because the trusts involved are unable to pay for projects that meet their original specification. This has led to calls for the Department of Health to step in to help meet the funding gaps which could exceed £80m during the lifetime of the contracts.
The issue is another embarrassment for the government which is trying to get the PFI running in the health sector after long delays.
- Financial Times 02/09/96 page 7
