Health Secretary Steve Barclay said it is right to “take our time” on new hospitals after news emerged that almost a quarter of them will not be built on schedule.
He was visiting the Louisa Martindale Building at the Royal Sussex County Hospital in Brighton yesterday to see progress on the government’s new hospital scheme.
The £485 million wing opened in June to replace the almost 200-year-old Barry Building next door.
It is one of 40 new hospital buildings across the country that was earmarked to be built, a promise made by the government in October 2020.
But the government has been accused of making “woeful progress” with the project. Eight hospitals, nearly a quarter of the total, will not be finished by the 2030 target.
Eastbourne District General Hospital is one of those that will not be completed on time.
Speaking to The Argus, Mr Barclay said: “We’re committed to the hospital in Eastbourne but as we have seen in Brighton, these are complex schemes.
“It involves detailed discussions with clinicians to get the configuration of services right.
“It’s right we take our time to get the design of the scheme correct and work through those issues. We are absolutely committed to the scheme in Eastbourne.”
The Department for Health and Social Care has three definitions of "new hospitals": a major new clinical building/new wing on an existing site; a whole new hospital; a major refurbishment/alteration of all but the building’s frame.
Mr Barclay spoke with patients in the Louisa Martindale’s stroke ward. He also spoke to staff about the new 11-storey building.
He said: “It’s great to see the benefits of this investment in Brighton of almost £500 million. It’s great to hear the feedback from patients and staff. Patients have said what a difference it’s made to their care. The staff have said what a difference it’s made to their working conditions.
“It’s significant investment, we have over £20 billion pounds of investment in the new hospitals programme.
“The benefit of that can be seen here in Brighton.”
Asked whether current pay disputes may lead to difficulties staffing hospitals, Mr Barclay pointed towards the government accepting the recommendations from the independent NHS pay review bodies.
The recommendations are six per cent for most doctors, 8.1 per cent to 10.3 per cent for junior doctors and five per cent for senior leaders.
The British Medical Association said previously that consultants have seen their real take-home pay fall by 35 per cent over the past 14 years and are seeking “full pay restoration”.
From 7am tomorrow until 7am on Tuesday, August 15, junior doctors across England will be on strike.
Mr Barclay said: “The pay review body process looks at the issue of retaining staff. That’s why it makes its recommendations on pay which we have accepted. It also balances that with the need to invest in the NHS estate which we have done here in Brighton. It is also important to invest in numbers of doctors.
“It’s also important we invest in other issues such as technology as well. It is about pay but it’s also about numbers, the estate and technology.”
Mr Barclay also visited the Brighton Diagnostic and Treatment Centre at the Amex Stadium in Falmer.
The centre has carried out more than 22,000 tests for cancer and other conditions since opening in October 2021.
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