Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

Public-private Partnerships

Tuesday 21 October 2025 · 3 questions

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Answered 1 Partly answered 2 Not answered 0

Key points

  • Ministerial commitment to protect the NHS and ensure it remains free at the point of use.
  • Government considers public-private partnerships to deliver better community care as part of the 10-year plan.
  • Minister agrees to discuss with local GPs to ensure clarity on their role and resources in community care shifts.

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 Ian Lavery Lab Blyth and Ashington
NHS
Context

Following concerns about previous public-private partnership models like PFI, which were costly failures. The private finance initiative was criticised for costing £80 billion repaid over £13 billion invested, deemed a disaster by many.

Question

What steps are being taken to ensure that frontline NHS services are supported following the potential introduction of new public-private partnership contracts? We must learn from past mistakes; PFI was a huge mistake at an expense of £80 billion for £13 billion investment. Will the Minister reassure us that lessons have been learned and such failures will not repeat?

Answer from The Minister for Secondary Care (Karin Smyth)

This Government are determined to protect the NHS and ensure it remains free at the point of use. We look at various options including public-private partnerships to deliver better care in communities as per the 10-year plan, ensuring all proposals undergo robust value-for-money assessments.

Partly answered

Not addressed: Specific assurance about PFI lessons learned and applied was not provided; instead, generic commitment to protect NHS and ensure value for money was given.

How: Generic Commitment

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Q2 Ian Lavery Lab Blyth and Ashington
NHS
Context

After initial reassurance about NHS protection, concerns were raised specifically on the lessons from private finance initiative failures where £80 billion was repaid for an investment of £13 billion.

Question

May I congratulate the Secretary of State on his actions to repair the cherished NHS following 14 years of Tory destruction? We must learn from past mistakes. The PFI was a huge, expensive mistake—£80 billion repaid for £13 billion investment—an absolute disaster. Will the Minister reassure the House that the lessons of PFI have been well learned and they are truly in the past?

Answer from The Minister for Secondary Care (Karin Smyth)

Lessons have indeed been learned; we will ensure value for taxpayers’ money in all future proposals regarding health services.

Partly answered

Not addressed: Specific details or mechanisms on how lessons from PFI failures are being applied were not provided; generic commitment to value for money was given instead.

How: Generic Commitment

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Q3 Pippa Heylings Lib Dem South Cambridgeshire
NHS
Context

Local General Practitioners have expressed uncertainty about their role and resources in the transition of services from hospitals to communities as per neighbourhood health services.

Question

Meeting regularly with local GPs, they highlighted lack of clarity on their role and resources for the shift of services out of hospitals into community care. Will the Minister meet me to provide this certainty and assurance that GPs will be involved in planning these changes?

Answer from The Minister for Secondary Care (Karin Smyth)

It is the responsibility of local integrated care boards to involve all partners, including primary care, in the roll-out of neighbourhood health services. I am willing to discuss this further with the hon. Member.

Answered
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