Jonathan O'Brien (Cork North Central, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

It is interesting the Minister mentioned Carillion because its collapse has raised concerns. In British politics a number of commentators have commented on the use of PPPs and the contribution they have made. One politician said:

It enabled you [he was speaking to the Chancellor of the Exchequer], at least in the short term, to dress up considerable amounts of public expenditure and put them off the public sector balance sheet...We have now had enough evidence that it is not good value for money and therefore not sensible from the point of view of the taxpayer.

This was actually a Conservative politician, so there is not a left-wing-right-wing outlook to this matter. The publication of these cost-benefit analyses is important, and we need to find a way to achieve that without impinging on commercial incentives.

See this speech in context