Chancellor signs off £350m to complete stalled Midland Met hospital

Chancellor of the Exchequer Sajid Javid has signed off £350m to fund the completion of the Midland Metropolitan hospital in Birmingham.

Construction on the project has been stalled ever since the collapse of Carillion in 2018, although Balfour Beatty has been lined up to finish the building.

Last month, the NHS Trust in charge of the hospital said it hoped that work could start on site in December this year, with completion targeted for April 2022 for the hospital, which will bring together urgent care services from two hospitals in one site.

The Sandwell and West Birmingham Hospitals NHS Trust is currently finalising commercial terms preferred bidder Balfour Beatty and expects to sign a contract for the construction work in the next few weeks.

Javid, said: “It is absolutely right that the Midland Metropolitan hospital is completed so that doctors and nurses working for our NHS across the West Midlands can deliver excellent care in brand new, state-of-the-art facilities.

“This investment of £350 million will help deliver on the people’s priorities of improving the NHS and levelling up services available across the country.”