‘Financial pandemic’: £1 in every £11 spent on UK public contractors goes to private equity

Almost £24.4bn of government money went to private equity-run firms in year to April 2025, Guardian analysis shows ‘Treating children like cattle’: what happens when private equity takes over a UK care home? Nurseries, vets and shops: the sectors where private equity plays a big role One pound in every £11 of UK government spending on contractors went to private equity-controlled companies last year, research shows, including key services such as transport, waste management and healthcare....

By Carmen Aguilar García, Michael Goodier , Jessica Murray, Zeke Hunter-Green and Tom Richards