GMB Scotland reveals Ayrshire Councils pay staggering £32 million a year to private companies for just a dozen schools
Private companies stand to make millions in ‘absurd’ waste of taxpayers cash, says union.
Ayrshire councils pay back a staggering £32 million every year to private companies for just a handful of schools [1], GMB Scotland figures reveal.
South, North and East Ayrshire local authorities fork out approximately £2.6 million every month – or £600,000 a week – into the hands of clutches of profit-driven businesses.
The astonishing figures come from a Freedom of Information Request (FOI) submitted by GMB Scotland. [2]
Under PPP agreements set up by the councils, firms front up the cash for investment projects such as schools, but are then paid back obscene amounts from the public purse over decades-long contracts.
They are popular because the initial outlay stays off the council’s balance sheet – but the taxpayer often pays up to 10 times the cost of the project.
All three councils are already struggling for cash to provide services for the people of Ayrshire, yet millions of pounds from local council tax payers will go to profit making private companies who are cashing in on these contracts.
Paul Arkison, GMB Scotland, said:
"This is a completely absurd amount of money for small local authorities to be paying in PPP payments.
"Many GMB members in Ayrshire have seen their hours of work cut and are worried about their futures, yet this sickening amount of money gets paid to greedy private companies who have no interest or care for the good people of Ayrshire.
"Many of our members who work in these schools are employed by private companies and are denied the Scottish Living Wage by profit making penny pinching.
"It is high time Ayrshire councils ordered a review of these contract."
