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P.F. Eye
P.F. Eye

An Idiot's Guide to the PFI

By Paul Foot

Norman Lamont tinkered with it. John Major approved it. But the intellectual thrust for the idea of the Private Finance Initiative (PFI) came from David Willetts, the Tory frontbencher nicknamed 'Two Brains'.

This is the story of the PFI: how it became a jewel in the crown of New Labour, its savings, its costs, its pitfalls and windfalls, and how it changed the face of British accountancy and British politics.





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Private Eye Issue 1619
In This Issue
Mr Read versus the Post Office… Pope declares Devil victorious and urges humanity to run up white flag… Deirdre’s Photo Romance Casebook… US steps up aid with delivery of thousands of missiles… Nursery Times: What is wrong with the princess?… Meet the dashing military hunks the royals can’t live without… Nikki Haley ‘didn’t commit enough crimes’… The Duke and Duchess of York’s selected letters, as told to Craig Brown.

Belize and thank you
Slicker on the tax arrangements of Lord Ashcroft

Drax vs facts
Is the tide turning against tree-burning power stations?

Photo finish
The cracked relationships behind the royal portrait storm

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Private Eye Issue 1618
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