LABOUR ramped up its calls to end the scandal of private finance initiatives (PFI) today following a damning report by Whitehall’s spending watchdog.

The National Audit Office (NAO) found little evidence that government investment in more than 700 existing public-private projects has delivered financial benefits.

And it found the cost of new privately financed projects such as building schools “can be 40 per cent higher” than using public money.