According to research by investment bank Seymour Pierce, the public sector is likely to be contracting-out £101 billion worth of work by 2014-15.
Already the value of contracts awarded each year has doubled in four years since 2008. The rise has not been steady, but rapidly increasing in the last year.
60% of the contracts awarded in 2012 were from local authorities rather than central government, but the bankers say “healthcare is also seen as a growth market, with the value of private sector deals rising from £157 million to £552 million between 2008 and 2012”.