Dear Sir, I was interested, though not surprised at the content of John Parlour’s letter on the MRI Scanner. The situation obviously is caused by the Private Finance Initiative (PFI) deals when building and equipping our local hospitals including Bishop Auckland. I don’t think the current finance officers are responsible for contracts drawn up some years ago, but it would be advantageous to know when these contracts expire and if financial matters can be dealt with more efficiently and wisely. Another example recently was the cost of replacing a light bulb above a patient’s bed, reported in the Daily Mail to be a staggering £600.00! Can this really be true? PC.