The previous government pledged to build 40 new hospitals by 2030 but ‘not a single new hospital was built in the past five years’
The Labour government has confirmed that all projects in the New Hospital Programme will be delivered, backed by a £15 billion investment spread over consecutive five-year waves.
The announcement follows a review of the scheme which found that the previous government’s commitment to build 40 new hospitals by 2030 was “behind schedule, unfunded and therefore undeliverable.”
The Infrastructure Projects Authority (IPA) highlighted these issues in its annual report published last week, rating the previous scheme as ‘red’.
Following an independent review by IPA, the New Hospitals Programme’s rating was upgraded to ‘amber,’ reflecting steps taken to improve deliverability.
In May 2023, the former government had claimed the programme was supported by over £20 billion, but this funding was never delivered.
Health secretary Wes Streeting said: “The New Hospital Programme we inherited was unfunded and undeliverable.”
“Not a single new hospital was built in the past five years, and there was no credible funding plan to build forty in the next five years.”
He assured that the current government has set out “an honest, funded, and deliverable” plan to rebuild the NHS Read More…