Jeremy Hunt, the Health Secretary, announced yesterday a further £60 million in additional funding to complete the redevelopment of the Royal Sussex County Hospital in Brighton.
THE Hospital originally put forward an outline business case for receiving £420 million of funding, which was approved by the Government last year. Since then the Trust has been working to finalise the proposal and costings with the lead contractor, which has shown an increase in the costs of the scheme.
Simon Kirby, MP for Brighton Kemptown and Peacehaven, who campaigned for the original £420 million and had been lobbying Ministers for this extra funding, was at the Royal Sussex County Hospital as Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt MP revealed that the Government has earmarked the funding for the inflationary impact on the scheme, meaning around £480m is now set aside for the project.
Simon said: “Last year I successfully campaigned for £420 million for the redevelopment of the Royal Sussex County Hospital. I have subsequently been lobbying both the Chancellor and the Health Secretary for an additional £60 million for the redevelopment.
“I was therefore delighted that this afternoon the Health Secretary announced that following these efforts, the Government has pledged that an additional £60 million has been set aside for the hospital redevelopment, taking the total to around £480 million. This is a very positive step forward.
“The Trust will now be able to conclude design work and finalise the costs, safe in the knowledge that the funding is secure, subject to the usual final negotiations.
“This redevelopment will enable the hospital to provide the very best facilities, which the patients and staff deserve. This is great news for our city and the wider area.
“I would again like to pay tribute to the hard-working staff at the hospital for putting together such a strong case.”
During the visit, the Health Secretary took the opportunity to praise the Kemptown MP for his campaigning efforts on behalf of the hospital and his constituents.
Nancy Platts, Labour’s parliamentary candidate for Brighton Kemptown and Peacehaven, said: “Additional investment in the redevelopment of the Royal Sussex is very welcome and it is a victory for the local community, who have campaigned so hard and for so long to get a new hospital. However, we are facing a crisis in our A&E and with nearby GPs retiring there is a high risk that even more people will be heading in the direction of our local hospital. It is nearly a year since the last announcement about funding, yet we are still waiting to hear when the money will get final government approval so that work can actually get started and local people can get the health care they deserve.”
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