SCHOOLS AMONGST THOSE TO BENEFIT FROM NEW EXECUTIVE PARTNERSHIP

13/06/2000 Finance Minister Jack McConnell today announced that the Scottish Executive is to take a financial stake in a new body to support Public/Private Partnerships. The move will help with the development of several school projects in the East and West of Scotland as well as an e-commerce project. Announcing the move the Minister said: "I am pleased to be able to announce today that the Executive will take a financial interest in Partnership UK in a bid to ensure Scottish projects and interests are safeguarded. Public/Private Partnerships have a significant role to play in delivering our agenda for new schools and hospitals. Last June I announced important reforms to the way we are taking forward these partnerships in Scotland to ensure better safeguards for the public and staff interest and greater transparency in the process. The new body - itself a new PPP - will initially support schools projects for East and Mid-Lothian, and refurbished primary schools for Glasgow City Council as well as a ground breaking E-Commerce project for the Scottish Tourist Board." NOTES TO NEWS EDITORS. 1. Partnerships UK will be launched today in London by the Chief Secretary of the Treasury. It will be a Public/Private Partnership, with the Government as the largest single share holder. The Scottish Executive stake is 5% and is expected to be of the order £1-2m. 2. PUK will become a co-venturer in PPP projects. It will fund a proportion of a project’s procurement cost and will meet part of the costs of advisers. PUK costs will be reimbursed by the successful bidder in projects. 3. Among the first tranche of projects to be supported by PUK are the following Scottish projects: new and refurbished schools for Glasgow, East and Mid-Lothian, and project Ossian — to develop e-commerce for the Scottish Tourist Board and Area Tourist Boards. 4. Mr McConnell announced during a debate in the Scottish Parliament on 24 June 1999 a number of PPP reforms:-

Full business cases to be made publicly available.
An option for schools and hospitals to revert to public ownership at no cost at the end of PPP contracts.
A presumption against surplus land being included in PPP projects and
Better protection for pensions of staff transferring from the public to the private sectors.

Contact: Fiona Wilson, tel:0131 244 2614. Internet: www.scotland.gov.uk

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