UK (Parliament Politics Magazine) – The NHS faces a £5.7bn repair cost for hospitals before demolition due to delays in the rebuilding plan, with critics calling it financial mismanagement.
A new analysis by the Liberal Democrats reveals that the cost of repairing 18 deteriorating hospitals could climb to £5.7bn due to prolonged delays in their reconstruction.
What did the Liberal Democrats’ analysis find about NHS hospital delays and costs?
The Liberal Democrats estimate that the revised hospital reconstruction timeline could push the cost of addressing the maintenance backlog from £2.1bn to £5.7bn.
The backlog of repairs at 18 hospitals has grown at an annual rate of 10.45% since Boris Johnson’s controversial promise to build “40 new hospitals by 2030.” A Liberal Democrat analysis warns that if this trend continues, the cost will soar to £5.7bn before construction begins in the 2030s.
The reconstruction costs for seven hospitals, where rebuilding is delayed until 2037, could rise from £722m to £2.378bn. This includes Nottingham’s two acute hospitals, the Royal Berkshire in Reading, and medical facility centres in East Sussex, Bexhill, and Hastings.
What’s causing the delay in England’s hospital rebuilding plan?
Eighteen of the 40 new hospitals promised by former Prime Minister Boris Johnson in 2019 won’t begin until 2030, the year all were supposed to be completed. The delay is due to financial strain and cost management.
As reported by The Guardian, NHS trust leaders warn that some of the 18 delayed hospitals, including St Mary’s in London, are in such dire condition that they could collapse before renovations start.
What did Wes Streeting announce about the new hospital programme delays?
Health Secretary Wes Streeting introduced a major revision to the New Hospital Programme last month, leading to extensive delays in several projects. This decision has raised concerns among hospital executives and local MPs.
His decision came after in-depth discussions with the Treasury, which set aside £3bn per year for the schemes.
What did the King’s Fund head of policy say about hospital building delays?
Siva Anandaciva criticized the government’s move to postpone sections of the national hospital building programme to save short-term costs. He stressed that “this may well end up being a false economy” since significant taxpayer funds will be spent maintaining deteriorating buildings rather than constructing new ones.
Mr Anandaciva added, “Right now there are some NHS facilities that are no longer fit for purpose and which are posing a risk to patients and staff alike. The government inherited NHS facilities that were already in a poor state.”
He said ongoing delays in hospital construction programs could lead to further deterioration of these facilities in the years ahead.
What did the Lib Dems’ health and social care spokesperson say about hospital delays?
Helen Morgan, a representative from the Lib Dems health department stated, “Communities are being forced to put up with ramshackle hospital buildings, utterly unfit for purpose, for years longer than they were promised. It is a complete disgrace. The Conservative party should hang its head in shame for leading communities up the garden path, making promises to them they knew they never intended to keep.”
The spokesperson added, “But the government’s lack of ambition is also shocking. It seems the government has embraced the false economy of dither and delay, accepting a managed decline of our NHS instead of rebuilding it into the envy of the world it once was.”
What did the Department of Health and Social Care say about NHS funding and hospital delays?
A Department of Health and Social Care representative stated, “This government inherited a broken NHS, and Lord Darzi’s investigation found that capital investment has been neglected. No one is under any illusions that the NHS estate we inherited is crumbling but the New Hospital Programme was on a completely unrealistic time frame and was unfunded.”
The spokesperson added that the government will allocate £13.6bn to NHS infrastructure next year, the largest capital investment since before 2010. This funding aims to repair hospital facilities and remove dangerous Raac concrete.
He further stated, “The Lib Dem manifesto pledged £17bn less for health and care than this government invested at the budget. The truth is, if their plans were being implemented, they would be building fewer hospitals, not more.”
Hospitals in the UK
Britain had 1,148 hospitals as per the record of August 2023, which included 930 under NHS management and 218 private facilities.