£12m for St Helier "a drop in the ocean", say Sutton's Lib Dem MPs

Responding to the news that the Government have announced new funding for Epsom and St Helier hospitals, Sutton’s Liberal Democrat MPs Bobby Dean and Luke Taylor have issued a joint statement, saying the money is “a drop in the ocean”.

The joint statement reads:

“We welcome the Government’s announcement of more funding for St Helier. It shows that our campaigning is working. But this funding is just a drop in the ocean compared to what our area needs.

“The repairs backlog is enormous - and this money will barely touch the sides. We need full repairs at St Helier now, and the new specialist care hospital to be delivered as soon as possible.

“The Labour Government’s delay of vital works at St Helier until the 2030s threatens the very existence of our hospital, because key buildings are now at serious risk of catastrophic failure.

“The urgent backlog of repairs and maintenance must be cleared now. The Government must provide the funding for these repairs urgently, or else corridor care and the collapsing estate will mean more patients will suffer.

“We have both continued to engage with the Government at every possible opportunity to get them to understand the urgency of the situation. In one-to-one meetings with Ministers, recent Prime Minister’s Questions, and in briefings on the New Hospital Programme (including one held just yesterday) we have both consistently raised the need to fund the backlog of repairs at St Helier.

“We will continue to lobby the Government and work with the local NHS trust on a new plan to bring forward the delivery of the new hospital building we were promised by the last Conservative Government, protecting vital emergency services at St Helier Hospital.”