Terry Jermy MP, Member of Parliament for South West Norfolk, visited The Queen Elizabeth Hospital (QEH) on Friday (28th February 2025) to discuss ongoing work to secure the site’s rebuild.
The QEH is one of seven hospitals across the UK on the Government’s fast track programme for new hospitals given the extent of RAAC (Reinforced Autoclaved Aerated Concrete) present in the building.
Around 79% of the roof and walls of The QEH, which was built in 1980, is made of light weight pre-cast planks. More than 6,500 steel and timber support props have been installed across 56 areas of the hospital to maintain the safety of the structure.
Jermy visited the hospital last Summer, soon after the election and has been lobbying the Government for rapid progress ever since.
On Friday, Jermy met with Chief Executive Officer Alice Webster as well as New QEH Programme Director Peter Cox and Chief Operating Officer Simon Illingworth.
Alice Webster commented: “It was good to meet Mr Jermy again and bring him up to date on our work with the national New Hospital Programme team and our progress towards a New QEH.”
Jermy thanked the staff for their hard work and dedication. “It was hugely important to meet the team and to get an update on progress. After 14 years of the Conservative failure to properly fund the NHS, it is clear to see that Labour’s investment of over £1bn for the rebuild of the QEH cannot come soon enough.”
Following the meeting, Mr Jermy has written to the Health and Social Care Secretary, Wes Streeting, to press for the QEH rebuild to happen “as soon as possible and that all opportunities are taken to bring forward the 2032/33 completion date.”
Last month, the Government’s review of the New Hospital Programme gave the green light for West Suffolk Hospital in Bury St Edmunds and The Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Kings Lynn – both hospitals serve South West Norfolk residents. The expected start date of construction for both hospitals in Wave 1 is 2027/28 (Review Outcome)
There had previously been years of uncertainty as to whether the schemes would go ahead. The New Hospitals Programme, announced by Boris Johnson in 2020, promised ‘40 new hospitals’ but was delayed by years and not a single new hospital had been constructed by the time the Conservatives left office. Upon coming into power, Labour found that the funding for the programme was shockingly due to run out in March 2025.
ENDS
