Campaigns
Positively Public Briefings
Monthly briefings providing the latest campaigning, privatisation and good practice news. Link to another page on this siteAvailable here
National news

Private markets expose public services

(09/07/08) Union calls for independent review of influence of marketisation on services

Look at PFI's impact on pay, says UNISON

(08/07/08) Union welcomes response to call to examine PFI pay impact

'We'll fight tooth and nail for services'

(15/06/08) Local government: Union will 'keep campaigning against privatisation'

Minding the health gap

(12/06/08) Cutting poverty is key to tackling health inequalities, says UNISON
News list >

The Private Finance Initiative

Public Private Partnerships (PPPs) of which the Private Finance Initiative (PFI) is the most common, is a government initiative which allows the private sector to design, finance, build, own and operate public buildings and lease them back to the public sector, typically for 25 years.

The government continues to promote the use of private finance to commission more public building schemes on the basis that they offer more value for money. Yet, PFI schemes are protracted, costly, inflexible and very expensive. It costs more for private companies to raise money than it would for the government or public sector. The only way private companies will make their money back is to cut either services or staffing costs. This means public service workers and users pay the real costs.

For more information:
Link to a web page on this siteUNISON PFI and PPP pages

CONTACT DETAILS
• The UNISON contact for the Positively Public campaign is Margie Jaffe.
Positively Public
1 Mabledon Place
London WC1H 9AJ
Email: positivelypublic@unison.co.uk
Recent documents
Fair Wages: How to end the two tier workforce in public services and achieve fair wages
UNISON's fair wages campaign calls for a fair wages regulation in public contracting to safeguard the employment conditions and pensions of staff, regardless of who employs them. This briefing explains the campaign, why we need it, what successes have been achieved and what remains to be done.
Link to a PDF document on this siteAcrobat PDF version
Public risk for private gain?
The public audit implications of risk transfer and private finance
A new UNISON report shows that the government has failed to evaluate its own claim that extra costs of PFI are justified, because risks are transferred to the private sector. There are now more than 500 PFI deals worth £36bn, but the the true cost of these deals to the taxpayer is still unknown and private companies are reaping the benefits of this oversight, at the expense of the public purse. (NB: This is a 1.2MB download)
Link to a PDF document on this siteAcrobat PDF version
Our values, our NHS
Results of UNISON's NHS survey, which we will use as evidence to show the government what members value most in the NHS, and argue for a constitution that ensures these principles are protected and built on in future
Link to a PDF document on this siteAcrobat PDF version
PFI – Retention of employment model
Branch guide
The Retention of Employment (ROE) model is a new policy implemented by the Department of Health, covering staff employed in NHS Trusts in England, which are involved in Private Finance Initiative (PFI) schemes. This negotiating guide seeks to explain UNISON policy on ROE; who is affected by ROE; how ROE works; how branches can negotiate before ROE is implemented; how branches can safeguard the interests of staff after ROE.
Link to a PDF document on this siteAcrobat PDF version
Shaping the future
UNISON's vision for public services
The document reaffirms UNISON’s commitment to high quality public services as the basis of a fair, prosperous and democratic society. It argues that because UNISON members work in public services, UNISON has a “dual role” as an advocate for its members and for “the best possible public services, available to all who need them".
Link to a PDF document on this site Shaping the future - UNISON's vision for public services (986165 bytes)
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