A Labour election victory could be the final nail in the coffin for Boris Johnson’s beleaguered pledge to build “40 new hospitals” by 2030, with the party set to rebrand the “unsustainable” scheme if it wins power, according to industry sources. The New Hospital Programme (NHP) was a flagship pledge of Mr Johnson’s 2019 manifesto, which was repeated by Rishi Sunak after calling the election last month. But it has been blighted by delays and accusations that the Conservatives had exaggerated the help it would provide to the NHS and the number of brand-new hospitals that would actually be built.
Wes Streeting, the shadow Health Secretary , has said that Labour is “committed to delivering the New Hospitals Programme”. But those close to the project expect Labour to rebrand the scheme, partially due to its associations with Mr Johnson and the repeated political rows over how many completely new hospitals it would include. One industry source told i : “The general expectation in the industry is Labour will want capital investment at size and speed, but badging around [the New Hospitals Programme] and 40 hospitals will be unsustainable.
“A reframing will definitely happen and procurement may have to be redone. The 40 hospitals nonsense and image of Boris will make it harder – when there are ultimately not 40 new hospitals, it could allow people to blame Labour rather than the poorly laid initial plans”. Election 2024 Rishi Sunak and Sir Keir Starmer have bee.