Tendering for building projects under the private finance initiative (PFI) should be improved after evidence that firms are becoming more selective in bidding for work, a new report has urged.
The National Audit Office (NAO) said PFI projects took an average of 34 months to tender between 2004-6, no faster than several years ago.
Projects were now receiving fewer bids, partly because of the cost and length of time it took to tender, said the report.
The NAO called for target times to be set, backed up by improvements in project management and better use of government expertise.
Sir John Bourne, head of the NAO said: "The tendering process is a vital part of the whole PFI deal and the recommendations in my report need to be acted on to secure better tendering and value for money."
Dr Neil Bentley, CBI director of public services, said: "The PFI has done what traditional procurement often failed to do - deliver facilities and services on time and to budget once contracts have been signed.
"But as the CBI has also made clear, public sector shortcomings are causing delays and adding costs during tendering, and the situation appears to be deteriorating."
Conservative MP Richard Bacon (South Norfolk), a member of the Commons public accounts committee, said the private sector's enthusiasm for PFI was "cooling" because of high bid costs and lengthy tendering periods.
"Under this government the public sector has few choices outside PFI for the funding of capital projects," he said.
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