Unison in Scotland has said that taxpayers will bear the burden of paying compensation if planned private finance initiative schools fail.

The union says local councils will have to pay up even if it is the fault of the private contractor.

Forum Response: Unison

Dave Watson, Unison Scotland's organiser for policy and information, told ePolitix.com: "Councils are accepting all the risks on behalf of the council tax payer - a fact that is usually hidden away in an appendix and not drawn to councillors' attention.

"Councils are using an accountancy method that favours PFI bids and to overcome the fact that private schemes are more expensive than public sector equivalents. Even after these sweeteners, these schemes still have an affordability gap. And councils bridge this by cutting back on services, lowering quality and squeezing space."

"This flies counter to the claim by the Scottish government that its support for PFI schools is based on the needs of pupils. From our analysis, the one's who really gain from this are the consultants, bankers and big business, while the poor old taxpayer picks up an inflated bill and takes all the risks."