Source · Select Committees · Public Accounts Committee
Recommendation 17
17
Accepted
IPA unable to evaluate PFI benefits due to insufficient and unavailable project data
Recommendation
In 2021, the IPA told the previous Committee that it was unable to conclude its evaluation of the benefits of PFI because it was unable to draw any meaningful conclusions from the data.37 The Treasury told us that the IPA was asked to deliver the information on benefits but found that the data was not available for what the private sector had done and what the public sector comparator would have been. In addition, NISTA told us that it was 29 Qq 24, 43 and 59; C&AG’s Report, para 1.8; HM Treasury, Thousands of jobs to be created as government announces multi-billion-pound investment to build Sizewell C, June 2025; Sizewell C, Green Light for Sizewell C – The First Majority British-Owned Nuclear Power Plant in Over 30 Years, June 2025 30 Q 68; C&AG’s Report, para 1.8 31 PFI0014 32 C&AG’s Report, Figure 3 33 C&AG’s Report, para 1.7 34 C&AG’s Report, PFI and PF2, Session 2017–19, HC 718, January 2018, p 5; Committee of Public Accounts, PFI in Housing and Hospitals, Fourteenth Report of Session 2010–11, HC 631, January 2011, p 10 35 C&AG’s Report, para 3.28; Committee of Public Accounts, Private Finance Initiatives, Forty-Sixth Report of Session 2017–19, HC 894, June 2018, p 5 36 Qq 32 and 61 37 C&AG’s Report, 3.28; HM Treasury, Treasury Minutes Progress Report – Update of the Government responses to the Committee of Public Accounts on Sessions 2010–12, 2012–13, 2013–14, 2014–15, 2015–16, 2016–17, 2017- 19, 2019 and 2019–21, CP 424, May 2021, pp 63-64 12 collecting data relating to asset condition and upcoming expiries in order to target and assist local authorities through the contract expiry and asset hand back process.38 38 Q 32 13 3 Contract management and capability Skills and capability
Government Response Summary
The government agrees to improve data availability, with a target implementation date of May 2027, by expanding the Infrastructure Pipeline over time to include more investor-relevant detail and continuing to publish PFI/PF2 project data annually.
Government Response
Accepted
HM Government
Accepted
3.1 The government agrees with the Committee’s recommendation. Target implementation date: May 2027 3.2 The Infrastructure Pipeline, recently published in July 2025, contains some of this information (e.g. project summary, lead department and capital value) in terms of opportunities for further private finance for projects which are planned or in construction. 3.3 As set out in the 10 Year Infrastructure Strategy, the government will expand and develop the Infrastructure Pipeline over time so that it includes more detail of relevance to investors. This will take place in close collaboration with investor groups, and will explore whether, for instance, the additional information the Committee have requested sits best in the Infrastructure Pipeline or in a parallel product focussed exclusively on investible projects. 3.4 Information in the Pipeline is dynamic and forward looking and would not include completed public infrastructure projects with private investment, information on legacy PFI investments, commercially sensitive information or other existing privately financed projects. Data on PFI and PF2 projects delivered by government departments and devolved administrations are published annually on gov.uk in interactive dashboard format. For individual projects this data sets out key contractual dates including expiry, original capital value, annual unitary payments, and the identity of contracting authorities, sponsoring departments, special purpose vehicles and investors.