Barratt Homes has pulled out of its agreement with Northants County Council to purchase 18 school sites and playing fields.
More collapses of such deals, and of PFI contracts, must be likely in the coming months, as contractors find it harder to raise the credit required.
Northamptonshire "Save Our Services" states: "Northants County Council... PFI deal... method of financing new schools... guarantees the PFI speculators high profits over thirty-two years while at the same time charges us, the public, £865 million for capital projects costing only £235 million.
The anticipated payment by Barratts of £95 million for the so called ‘surplus’ school sites and playing fields was due to have part-funded this nonsense... Now that the developer has pulled out of the deal a gaping hole will appear in the Council’s finances, threatening the public with either massive cuts in council services or tax hikes to pay for this fiasco...
We now have a privatised, grossly expensive education infrastrucure where private companies control our schools for 32 years and rip us off at every turn through inflated maintenance costs, extortionate management salaries, company profits and rising hire charges for community use of facilities. All of this when the money could have been better spent on improving education, not lining profiteers' pockets".
For further information contact: ‘Save Our Services’ 01604 752588. or email davegreen@nhampton.fsnet.co.uk.