In general terms, no Northern Ireland body has been established solely to oversee the PFI/PPP regime. Whilst in England and Wales a number of bodies oversee and advise on PFI/PPP such as Partnerships UK (PUK), the Private Finance Unit at the Department of Health and 4Ps, there are no local equivalents. Partnerships UK does however have a role in Northern Ireland, not least through its seat on the board of the SIB. The SIB is perhaps the closest thing Northern Ireland has to its own PUK, although its remit is far wider than just PFI/PPP but is instead about investment through the most appropriate means. Notwithstanding this, PFI/PPP is one of the key tools which is being used by that body to drive projects forward.
The SIB, a company limited by guarantee, is wholly owned by the Office of the First Minister and Deputy First Minister (OFMDFM). It states on its 'Mission' web page that it has three main roles:
■ to help the departments deliver projects/programmes;
■ to foster reform; and
■ to build a long-term investment strategy for Northern Ireland.
It works in a number of ways, either through the provision of advice to a procuring body (such as a government department or other public body) or by sponsoring or co-sponsoring a particular project. In essence, it supports local Government Departments in the delivery of their programmes and projects. As stated above, the body itself is not specifically tasked with overseeing PFI/PPP; however it is the SIB that has championed the development of standard form PFI project agreements both generally (following SoPC3 - see question 5.1 below) and for use in health projects.