Rising PFI costs 'putting hospitals at risk'
The rising cost of paying for hospitals built through the Private Finance Initiative is jeopardising the finances of some NHS Trusts, ministers say.
The Department of Health says 22 trusts, which run 60 units, are facing spiralling costs running into billions.
The government says the PFI projects - introduced by Labour - are now unaffordable for some trusts.
Under PFI, private firms pay to build hospitals, leaving the NHS to pay an annual fee or "mortgage" over 30 years.
Dominic Hughes reports.
22 Sep 2011
- From the section Health