Deals

U.K. Spends $14 Billion Per Year on Carillion-Style Projects

Private finance initiatives’ cost put at 200 billion pounds
There’s little evidence the projects deliver benefits: Hillier

A lock hangs on the gates of the Arundel Great Court development, operated by Carillion Plc, in London, U.K., on Monday, Jan. 15, 2018. Carillion, a U.K. construction company with government contracts in everything from hospitals to the HS2 high-speed rail project, filed for compulsory liquidation after failing in a last-ditch effort to shore up finances and get a government bailout.Photographer: Jason Alden/Bloomberg

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By Alex Morales

January 18, 2018 at 12:01 AM UTC

This article is for subscribers only.

The U.K. government spends 10.3 billion pounds ($14.3 billion) a year servicing public-private contracts of the the type it awarded to Carillion Plc, which went into liquidation Monday.

In a report prepared before Carillion collapsed, the National Audit Office, which scrutinizes government spending, said Thursday there is insufficient data to determine whether so-called private finance initiative deals offer value for taxpayers.