Go ahead for Barts and London

Largest ever hospital private PFI project gets the green-light - Multi-million pound investment in two brand new hospitals for
London

Tens of thousands of residents across the East End and Thames Gateway are set to benefit from a £1 billion re-development of two London hospitals - St Bartholomew's and the Royal London - creating Britain's biggest hospital and the largest A&E in Europe.

Health Secretary Patricia Hewitt today gave the go-ahead for the scheme which includes state-of-the-art cancer and cardiac facilities, and when complete will include up to 1,248 beds on two sites.

The agreed re-development will deliver all the proposed services for patients, for nearly £20million a year less than the trust's original proposals. This should save nearly £650m over the 35 year life of the contract for better NHS servcies in East London.

Patricia Hewitt said:
"This is an excellent deal for NHS patients in East London and beyond into the Thames Gateway. I am securing the future of first-rate NHS services for some of the most deprived communities in the country. At the same time we have ensured affordability and value for the taxpayers' money. Barts and the London are safe in this Government's hands.

"As a result of all the hard work by the trust and its partners, we have now developed plans which will make a real difference to the historic under-investment in East London's hospitals. It delivers much needed extra-investment for health services in London under terms that represent real value for money for the taxpayer.

"The new deal saves the NHS £650 million over the life of the contract, more than enough to build another major new hospital."

Construction of the new hospitals will begin in the coming weeks and the new facilities are expected to be fully complete by 2016.

The project is the second hospital PFI scheme to be approved in recent weeks, with Hull and East Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust also receiving the go-ahead for new oncology and haematology facilities.

The recent NHS operating manual, 'The NHS in England: the operating framework for 2006/7', introduces measures to improve the ability of trusts to plan for major investments, including PFI. It asks that trusts planning major new hospital buildings, including PFI schemes, take account of the current reforms to the NHS.

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