Review of opportunities for public private partnerships in Northern Ireland

The Working Group surveyed the experience to date with PPP in Northern Ireland, involving 24 projects to a total capital build value of £167 million. This has involved primarily the Design, Build, Finance & Operate model, which is the one typically taken forward under the Private Finance Initiative. Projects have been largely accommodation or technology based. The report, drawing extensively also on experience from outside of Northern Ireland, concluded that there are significant possibilities for PPP in the infrastructure sector, with the Design, Build, Finance & Operate model having the greatest potential in this area. The group also reviewed the potential of a variety of PPP forms. Those such as ‘non profit distributing’ bodies have been included and recommended as requiring further consideration. The report also seeks to define ‘funding’ as the source of public revenue to pay for a given service, whereas ‘financing’ is defined as the mechanism used to raise the capital needed for investment. The Working Group concluded that given the scale of the Northern Ireland infrastructure deficit, the level of funding will have to increase significantly in order to provide the required level of public services. Sources of ongoing funding were identified as: 1. Better use of Departmental Expenditure Limits which the Executive is already seeking to do in the context of the Spending Review by seeking the best possible outcome from Treasury and by improving public sector efficiency and effectiveness; 2. Increases in local taxation under a reformed rating system; 3. User charges where it is fair and appropriate that costs should fall on those using a service, and; 4. Asset disposals, so that the Executive only retains assets that are needed for services to the public. The Working Group calculated that, were the current investment deficit to be addressed, there is the potential to create 7,400 jobs over a 10-year period in the construction industry