Labour demands inquiry into delays to hospital-building programme

Reports of Treasury concern over the spiralling cost of Boris Johnson’s promised NHS investment

Shadow health secretary Wes Streeting (PA)

Labour is demanding an investigation into claims that government infighting is delaying a programme to refurbish, extend or build 40 NHS hospitals.

Boris Johnson announced plans in 2019 to build “40 new hospitals” by 2030, though it later emerged that many of the plans were in fact only renovations of existing facilities.

But NHS bosses have complained that trusts are unable to proceed with the work because they are waiting for sign-off from government ministers, with the Treasury reported to be concerned about spiralling costs.

NHS Confederation chief executive Matthew Taylor said: “The government launched these flagship new builds with much fanfare, but NHS leaders are becoming increasingly frustrated that the money isn’t following through. The fear now is that some of these schemes may never see the light of day.”

The Sunday Times reported that only six projects that predate Mr Johnson’s premiership have so far started construction, and just one – a £35m cancer centre in Cumbria – has been completed.

Ten smaller schemes are due to start before September 2024, but eight “pathfinder” schemes that were supposed to be completed no later than 2028 have yet to be given a start date.

Saffron Cordery, of NHS Providers, told the paper: “Trusts are unable to get the shovel in the ground, and they fear being on the receiving end of local reputational damage, because it looks as though they’re unable to manage ... The reality is that [they] are ready to push ahead, and are waiting for the green light from the programme.”

Now shadow health secretary Wes Streeting has written to the National Audit Office to call for an inquiry into the delays.

Mr Streeting said it was “concerning that rows between government ministers are causing delays to the programme to deliver on the government’s commitment to build 40 new hospitals”.

And he added: “NHS trusts are still waiting to be allocated funds to begin construction, two and a half years on from the general election. This is despite many of these planned building works only being alterations or refurbishments, not in fact ‘new hospitals’.

“I am concerned that unnecessary delays will result in significant waste of taxpayers’ money, given the increase in prices for construction materials in the past year.”

Mr Streeting noted that the New Hospitals Programme was reported last year to have been given a “red” rating by the government’s own Infrastructure and Projects Authority, which warned that it “appears to be unachievable”.