Jo Armstrong

Introduction

The Fraser of Allander Institute profile of Jo Armstrong states:

Jo Armstrong is well connected in political, financial and academic circles. 'After almost 20 years working as a business economist, holding senior posts in the UK's financial and government sectors, Jo is now operating as an independent consultant. She was a Policy Adviser to the First Minister of the Scottish Parliament providing both financial as well as economic advice. Whilst an employee of the Royal Bank of Scotland plc, she established two new analytical units. The Business Economics Unit provides microeconomic analysis in support of bank lending and the Project Finance Analysis Unit is responsible for undertaking cashflow and risk analysis in support of major project finance deals world-wide. Jo was project manager to the Allander Series team and was one of the contributors to the accompanying book'

Jo Armstrong and Scottish Water

Jo Armstrong has managed to locate herself as a key strategic player in the lobby to change the ownership model of Scottish Water. In 2006 she called for the Privatisation of Scottish Water in a book, 'Raising the Return: Scotlands Public Assets' co-published by the Fraser of Allander Institute and the Scottish Council Foundation.

The Four pamphlets in the book consider the following

• "1. The nature of the challenge facing the Scottish Executive to show its Efficient

Government Initiative is delivering its promises;

• 2. How activity and productivity in Scotland’s health services have adjusted to the

50% real increase in centralised funding since devolution;

• 3. The reasons why it is desirable to revisit Scottish Water’s ownership structure as

a publicly-owned monopoly-supplier of water and sewage services;

• 4. The challenges facing Scotland’s civil service to develop and deliver policy whilst

remaining part of the Whitehall civil service" .

Her central assertion, in her re-visitation of the Scottish Water ownership model, was that the system of calculating the block grant from the UK government to the Scottish Executive (known as the Barnett Formula) did not include any funding for Scottish Water. Thus meaning the Scottish Executive were opening themselves to an open ended risk in promising to fund Scottish Water over the long term; given how, at some point, the block grant could decrease or the Scottish Water may not be as efficient as expected. And, moreover, that if the Executive was to continue giving loans to Scottish Water the money to pay for it was, would continue to come out, of the budgets of other public services .

Other Activity

PPP

Jo Armstrong has also involved herself in other areas of concern to the Scottish people. For instance the area of Public Private Partnerships (PPP'S) is one that she has written on. She appears to be a proponent of PPP despite evidence that they are a bad deal for the people of Scotland see refs below .

She herself says that she has had,

'Key roles:

• advising on the development of partnerships and projects
• ensuring financial viability & acceptability to the private sector
• assuring value for money & public sector affordability'.

This advice has been given to both the Scottish Executive and the Royal Bank of Scotland; one of the main beneficiaries of PPP's. Her relationship with the Royal Bank of Scotland encompassed,

'The provision of analysis and advice in support of the Royal Bank of Scotland’s Structured Finance deals covering

• PFI/PPPs for UK hospitals, roads, prisons and housing
• gas and coal-fired power projects worldwide
• oil, mineral and petrochemical installations world-wide
• leisure and hotel projects in the US and the UK' .

Despite this business relationship with the Royal Bank she also took on an, 'an initial review of the Scottish Executive’s experience of, and role in Public Private Partnerships (PPPs) in Scotland reporting to the Scottish Cabinet through the Minister for Finance' . The then Scottish Executive saw no issue with Jo Armstrong doing work for both them and the Royal Bank of Scotland. Yet the Royal Bank of Scotland were, and no doubt still are, looking to profit from PPP contracts that the Scottish Executive were putting out to tender.

Glasgow Housing Stock Transfer

Another contentious issue that Jo Armstrong has been involved in is the Glasgow Housing Stock Transfer from the council to the Private Glasgow Housing Association, an organisation that is effectively financed by the Banks. This plan met with serious opposition from a great deal of people in Glasgow. Not least because of a bafflement of why the debt write off and the soft loans and grants could not have been provided to a council landlord. Unlike Armstrong, who will not nor never be affected, they also worried that this would lead to a deterioration of the housing stock and a loss of democratic control over housing in Glasgow.

According to Armstrong her role incorporated;

'Negotiating the Scottish Executive’s funding package with the Glasgow Housing Association (GHA) and its private sector banks to secure the transfer of 80,000 houses from Glasgow city council’s ownership. The funding packaged secured the write-off of £900 million of public sector debt, raised £700 million of grants and soft loans and £700 million of private sector debt to contribute to a £6 billion redevelopment programme. This involved extensive liaison and negotiations with the Scottish Executive’s law officers and senior counsel, the funders’ lawyers and the many technical advisors working on the project of this complexity' .