Assessing PPP needs objective analysis

PPP is a hot topic for parties in the forthcoming elections. The key area of criticism in Scotland is the cost of private funding. The SNP says PPP has resulted in "hospitals and schools lumbered with credit-card payments" to banks and have proposed a "Scottish Futures Trust" to fund public-sector infrastructure projects.

But criticism is not confined to politicians and to value for money. Many architects see PPP as encouraging cheapness rather than promoting the design excellence that most want to see in public buildings and major engineering works.

Given the hug...