Asked by: Ian Roome (Liberal Democrat - North Devon)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of potential increased maintenance costs for NHS Hospitals whose construction projects have been delayed under(a) wave 2 and (b) wave 3 of the New Hospital Programme review.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The safety of National Health Service staff and patients is of vital importance to the Government. That is why repairing and rebuilding our hospital estate is a key part of our ambition to create an NHS that is fit for the future through our 10-Year Health Plan. The New Hospital Programme review considered the clinical impacts of the quality of the estate as part of the prioritisation exercise involving a multi-criteria decision support analysis tool.
Integrated care boards will collectively receive over £4 billion in annual capital allocations in 2025/26. These allocations are managed at a local level, with funds allocated according to local priorities, including estate maintenance works. In addition, my Rt. Hon. Friend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer also committed over £1 billion to make inroads into the backlog of critical maintenance and to tackle dangerous reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete. Further detail on funding will follow at the earliest opportunity, including local capital allocations and national capital programmes for 2025 to 2026, as part of NHS planning guidance. Capital funding levels for future years will be determined through the current Spending Review which concludes in June 2025. Future Spending Reviews will consider needs across the NHS estate, including hospitals whose constructions have been delayed.
Asked by: Ian Roome (Liberal Democrat - North Devon)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to increase (a) planned and (b) preventative maintenance at NHS hospitals impacted by delays to the New Hospital Programme.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Repairing and rebuilding our hospital estate is a key part of our ambition to create a National Health Service that is fit for the future through our 10-Year Health Plan.
Integrated care boards will continue to receive annual capital allocations. These allocations are managed at a local level, with funds allocated according to local priorities, including for estate maintenance works. In addition, my Rt. Hon. Friend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer also announced over £1 billion to make inroads into the backlog of critical maintenance and to tackle dangerous reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete. Further details on funding will follow at the earliest opportunity, including local capital allocations and national capital programmes for 2025 to 2026, as part of NHS planning guidance. Capital funding levels for future years will be determined through the current Spending Review, which concludes in June 2025.
Asked by: Ian Roome (Liberal Democrat - North Devon)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what his Department's definition of pre-construction works is in the context of Wave 3 of the New Hospital Programme Review.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Pre-construction works are carried out prior to main construction commencing and include a wide range of activity including business case development, enabling works, site surveys, and design and planning work for the new hospital.
Asked by: Ian Roome (Liberal Democrat - North Devon)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of registration timeframes for new healthcare providers registering with the Care Quality Commission.
Answered by Andrew Gwynne - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department is aware of delays experienced by new healthcare providers registering with the Care Quality Commission (CQC), and has increased its oversight of the CQC to ensure the backlog of applications that are over 10 weeks old, is reduced. The CQC is prioritising applications that increase the capacity to the health and social care system, and/or that help manage winter pressures in the National Health Service or social care.
The CQC is reviewing their IT systems to inform the changes it will need to implement to ensure the registration process is efficient.
Asked by: Ian Roome (Liberal Democrat - North Devon)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether the New Hospital Programme Review has been completed; and when he plans to announce the results of the review.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The review is complete, and we will publish the outcome of the review, including a new and realistic delivery schedule for the New Hospital Programme, shortly.
Asked by: Ian Roome (Liberal Democrat - North Devon)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will hold discussions with the NHS England Investment Committee on the time it has taken to review the business case for North Devon District Hospital.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Royal Devon University Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust is currently developing their Strategic Outline Case (SOC) for the new North Devon District Hospital scheme. Following approval of their SOC, they will need to develop their Outline Business Case, and then a Full Business Case, prior to commencing construction as soon as possible, as is usual for large infrastructure projects.
The New Hospital Programme Investment Committee met in November 2024 and considered the business case put forward by the trust for accommodation on the site. However, the committee recommended that the trust address several conditions for approval. We are working with the trust on options to resubmit the case to the committee in December 2024.
Asked by: Ian Roome (Liberal Democrat - North Devon)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will expedite delivery of the Our Future Hospital programme funding for North Devon District Hospital to ensure that the new hospital facilities will be completed before 2031.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The National Health Service is broken, and the Government is determined to fix it. We recognise the need for investment in NHS estates across the country, including at the North Devon District Hospital. We will provide the investment and reform needed to get patients the care they deserve.
My Rt hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care has asked for an urgent report on the degree to which the New Hospital Programme is funded, and a realistic timetable for delivery. He will consider this carefully then report back to patients, clinicians, and local communities to confirm any possible revisions to the schedule.