The NHS has halved the number of places on its Procure 21+ framework after dramatically scaling down the amount of work expected to flow through it

There are no official figures on projected cuts but sources said they had seen documents suggesting that 鈥渢he capital that鈥檚 going to be available over the next two to three years will be vastly reduced. Some parts of the country will see cuts of 66%鈥�.

Ian Greggor, a director of Cyril Sweett, added that NHS bodies should realise that investment now could create savings later on. He said: 鈥淢any trusts know it鈥檚 going to be very, very tight and they know they will be expected to throw everything they can into frontline services. But they will have to face up to the notion of having to invest in buildings and IT in order to save cash down the line.鈥�

The capital available to trusts over the next three years will be reduced by as much as 66% in some areas

Industry source

The full 11-strong shortlist for Procure 21+ emerged last week. New teams in the running include Bovis Lend Lease; Rydon with Miller and Thomas Vale; Volker Fitzpatrick with Henry Boot; and Willmott Dixon with Robertson.

All the incumbents made it through, except for Costain, which pulled out of the race in October citing 鈥渙ther priorities鈥�. They are: Laing O鈥橰ourke, Kier Health, Bam Nuttall, Balfour Beatty, Medicinq, Integrated Health Projects (a joint venture between Vinci and Sir Robert McAlpine) and Interserve Health.

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