Help urged for PFI pioneer

Norman Lamb, Liberal Democrat Norfolk MP and DTI spokesman, has urged the Government to help out PFI pioneer Norfolk and Norwich health trust.

His comments come as a National Audit Office report reveals that the trust has a massive debt – something Mr Lamb puts down to it being a PFI test case.

Mr Lamb said: “This report shows that the local health trust is paying the price for having a pioneer hospital, and that this situation might be being repeated in communities up and down the country.

“The building of this hospital has had a massive impact on the local health economy, leaving it deeply in the red. The Government should help clear the current deficit to ensure that this 35-year contract doesn’t have a negative impact on patients.”