34 hospitals in England have roofs that could collapse

The roofs of 34 hospital buildings in England could collapse, ministers have admitted.

Maria Caulfield, a health minister, revealed the situation in a written answer to a parliamentary question asked by the Liberal Democrats’ health spokesperson, Daisy Cooper.

She said surveys carried out by the NHS found that 34 buildings at 16 different health trusts contained a certain type of concrete that is not fit to last, the Guardian reports.

Ms Caulfield’s admission means more NHS facilities are at risk from reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC) than previously thought.

Affected hospitals include Hinchingbrooke in Cambridgeshire, Frimley Park in Surrey and Airedale in Yorkshire.

“It’s simply unthinkable that patients are being treated in buildings that could be at risk of collapse,” said Ed Davey, the Lib Dem leader told the Guardian.

“From record waiting lists to crumbling hospital roofs, patients are paying the price of years of Conservative neglect of our NHS.”

Ms Caulfield said the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) has set aside £110m “to mitigate the immediate risk”

In her written response to Ms Cooper, she said trusts would receive £575m more to help, but several of the affected trusts say it would be cheaper to build a new hospital than rebuild one.

A DHSC spokesperson told the Guardian: “We are taking action to improve health infrastructure across the country and have provided more than £4bn for trusts to support local priorities – including to maintain and refurbish their premises – and have set aside over £685m to directly address issues relating to the use of RAAC in the NHS estate.

“By 2030 we will have 40 new hospitals which will provide state-of-the-art facilities to ensure world-class provision of healthcare for NHS patients and staff by replacing outdated infrastructure.”