THE vast cost of tackling the NHS’s growing and dangerous repairs backlog is dwarfed by the tens of billions of pounds still owed under private finance initiative contracts, campaigners warned today.

Some £44 billion is owed to PFI firms, far outnumbering the mounting £13.8bn bill needed to cover repairs, according to a study by NHS campaign group We Own It.

The group found that 78 out of 80 trusts still burdened with PFI debts had already paid off the initial capital investment, the principal amount spent by private firms.