INTERVIEW John Laing boss hits out at "frustrating" PFI process.

(From AFX Europe (Focus))

LONDON (AFX) - The chief executive at one of Britain's top PFI investors, John Laing PLC, has hit out at the growing complexity of the process and claimed the much-maligned procurement route has actually got slower, despite government efforts to speed it up.

Adrian Ewer told AFX News that public private partnerships such as the 2.2 bln stg-a-year Building Schools for the Future programme were painfully slow, despite UK Treasury work to improve the bidding process and plans for 26 bln stg in new projects by 2010.

"There's a well defined pipeline of PFI projects but stuff is moving slowly through that pipeline, and that's frustrating," he said in a telephone interview. "It used to be quicker, I'd …