West Suffolk Hospital rebuild to be reviewed by Labour

During a spending inheritance statement delivered in parliament, Rachel Reeves said the government has inherited a projected overspend of £22 billion from the previous Tory administration. 

Amongst other plans, the chancellor confirmed the government has agreed a pay offer with junior doctors and is set to scrap Rishi Sunak's Advanced British Standard education plan.

Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves making the statement (Image: House of Commons/UK Parliament/PA Wire)

She also addressed the previous government's new hospitals programme, in which they pledged to build 40 new facilities by 2030.

This would include a new West Suffolk Hospital in Bury St Edmunds, with the chancellor said it will be completely reviewed.

She said: "In October 2020, the government announced that 40 new hospitals would be built by 2030. Since then, only one new project has opened to patients and six have started their main construction activity.

"The National Audit Office were clear that delivery was wildly off track, but since coming into office it has become clear that the previous government continued to maintain its commitment to the 40 hospitals without anywhere close to the funding required to deliver them."

She continued: "That gave our constituents false hope. We need to be straight with the British people about what is deliverable and what is affordable.

"So we will conduct a complete review of the new hospital programme with a thorough, realistic and costed timetable for delivery."

West Suffolk Hospital is one of the 40 hospitals that would have been impacted by the plan (Image: Newsquest)

When asked if the government would meet with constituents and hospitals where work had been promised by the previous government, chancellor Reeves said: "My right honourable friend the health secretary will meet with constituents who are affected by the 40 hospital betrayal from the previous government because we recognise, as the honourable lady says, the importance of ensuring that all of our constituents have the health services that they deserve." 

This comes after Bury St Edmunds and Stowmarket MP Peter Prinsley called for an 'urgent' confirmation of the capital funding to progress to replace the Bury St Edmunds hospital.

In his maiden speech earlier this month; he said: "Many of our hospitals are indeed in poor repair and we have seen very little progress on the 40 new hospitals famously promised by the last Government.

"In Bury St Edmunds, we urgently need to confirm the capital funding to progress the replacement of the West Suffolk hospital which, like my own James Paget university hospital in Great Yarmouth and our sister hospital in King’s Lynn, is supported by thousands of scaffolding poles and is literally falling down.

"Last week, it was reported that bird droppings had fallen through the roof on to sterile surgical instruments.

"My predecessor (Jo Churchill) was a strong advocate for the replacement of our hospital, and I will aim to continue her work."

MP Peter Prinsley (Image: Paul Geater)

Following the review announcement, former Conservative parliamentary candidate Will Tanner said: “West Suffolk Hospital provides amazing care but it is falling down.

"That’s why the Conservatives had a plan to rebuild the hospital by 2030 - because not doing so puts patients and NHS staff at risk.

“Labour’s decision to abandon that plan - which was on target and fully-funded - is short-sighted, irresponsible and a betrayal of a promise that was made to voters only a few weeks ago.”

The former member of parliament for Bury St Edmunds, Jo Churchill, said it is "bitterly disappointing to see a Labour government delay this vital investment." 

She added: "The incredible staff at West Suffolk Hospital deserve a state of the art hospital fit for the future and not held up by scaffolding at a cost of more than £60million and counting.

"I hope the new MP stands up to his party, especially as he works in a Norfolk RAAC hospital and understands the issues, and works with us to get the promised hospital that so many people worked so hard to secure back on track."

Chancellor Rachel Reeves said she will deliver the Labour Government’s first budget on October 30.