Tag Archives: nhs buildings

21 August 2025 – today’s press releases

  • Rising numbers in asylum hotels: Govt must speed up processing to get backlog down
  • Scottish NHS still relies on almost 600 buildings which are more than 70 years old

Rising numbers in asylum hotels: Govt must speed up processing to get backlog down

Responding to this morning’s immigration figures showing a rise over the past year in the number of asylum seekers housed in hotels, Liberal Democrat Home Affairs spokesperson Lisa Smart MP said:

The asylum backlog has been far too large for far too long.

The Conservatives trashed our immigration system and let numbers spiral. Now this Labour government is failing to get a grip on the crisis.

The Government urgently needs to stop dangerous Channel crossings and speed up asylum processing to bring down the backlog and end hotel use once and for all.

Scottish NHS still relies on almost 600 buildings which are more than 70 years old

Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Alex Cole-Hamilton MSP has today said that making sure the NHS has the facilities it needs to thrive must be a top priority, after new research by his party revealed that almost 600 NHS buildings are more than 70 years old.

A Scottish Liberal Democrat freedom of information request to all of Scotland’s health boards found that:

  • There are 597 NHS buildings over 70 years old across Scotland.
  • 121 of these are located in NHS Glasgow, where there are also 210 buildings up to 50 years old.
  • 104 buildings are more than 70 years in old in NHS Lothian. This figure is 97 in NHS Grampian and 93 in NHS Tayside.
  • In NHS Ayrshire and Arran 30 buildings are more than 80 years old – predating the founding of the NHS.
  • Across Scotland, there are also at least 18 buildings which are both more than 70 years old and require high risk repairs.
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25-26 January 2025 – the weekend’s press releases

  • NHS: “bonfire” of targets shows shocking lack of ambition for patients
  • Over 500 infrastructure incidents at delayed hospitals last year which now are “hanging by a thread”
  • Councils paying £24,000 more a year per pensioner in nursing costs as Lib Dems call on govt to reverse “foolish” NICs hike
  • Reeves on Kuenssberg: Chancellor’s approach to growth “does not survive contact with reality”
  • Badenoch on Kuenssberg: “Bungling Badenoch” still has no idea how angry people are at the damage the Conservatives did
  • Scottish Conservative leader urged to explain whether he believes triple lock should be means tested
  • Almost 1 in 5 senior mental health roles missing a permanent appointee

NHS: “bonfire” of targets shows shocking lack of ambition for patients

Responding to a report in the Times that the government is set to scrap half of NHS targets, Liberal Democrat Health and Social Care spokesperson Helen Morgan MP said:

Patients have put up with a health service that has been run into the ground and caused unnecessary suffering for millions.

The new government cannot claim to have broken with years of Conservative neglect simply by moving the goalposts in this way.

That is not delivering for patients, instead it is a sly attempt to give themselves an undeserved pat on the back.

From delays to reforms of social care, new hospitals being kicked into the longgrass and now this reported bonfire of NHS targets, this new government is showing a staggering lack of ambition for patients.

Over 500 infrastructure incidents at delayed hospitals last year which now are “hanging by a thread”

  • At hospitals in the New Hospital Programme which have seen their construction dates pushed back there were 506 infrastructure incidents – causing 32 days of clinical time to be lost
  • These sites also saw close to 100 floods last year – a quarter of all floods on the NHS England estate despite accounting for less than 1% of the buildings
  • Delayed hospitals have already had to shut all toilets on the estate following sewage leaks and burst water pipes mean patients warned off going to A&E
  • The Liberal Democrats said that the figures revealed that the delayed hospitals are “hanging on by a thread” and called on the Health Secretary to publish a full impact assessment into the risks to patient safety

There were more than 500 infrastructure and estate incidents last year at hospitals where construction as part of the New Hospital Programme will be delayed, research by the Liberal Democrats has revealed.

They resulted in significant impact for patients with 759 hours of clinical time lost as a result of these incidents, the equivalent of 32 days.

241 of these infrastructure and estate incidents were judged to be caused by or related to critical infrastructure risk at these sites, equating to almost half. These issues can include crumbling roofs at risk of collapse, water leaks, broken-down lifts or ventilation and heating systems not working properly.

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28 October 2024 – the overnight press releases

  • Record number of floods in NHS hospitals as trusts experience three fires a day
  • Rennie responds to Findlay speech trail

Record number of floods in NHS hospitals as trusts experience three fires a day

There has been a record number of floods recorded in NHS Trusts this year with the health service’s estate reporting three fires a day, analysis of the latest NHS data by the Liberal Democrats has revealed.

In 2023/24, the NHS reported that there were 358 floods. That is a record number from when the data first started being recorded in 2021/22 when there were 176 and equates to a 28% …

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25-27 October 2024 – the weekend’s press releases

  • Ed Davey: get rid of Carer’s Allowance cliff edge
  • Autumn Budget: NHS needs to be top priority to prevent winter crisis
  • Phillipson on Laura K: hospitals left to rot need funding for repairs
  • SNP ignore Parliament with hundreds of thousands of ‘Thatcherite’ P1 tests

Ed Davey: get rid of Carer’s Allowance cliff edge

Responding to news that the Government is set to increase the Carer’s Allowance threshold, Liberal Democrat Leader Ed Davey MP said:

Raising the earnings limit for Carer’s Allowance would be a good step forward, but I hope the Government will go further and get rid of the cliff edge altogether.

We need a full review of Carer’s Allowance to end the repayments scandal and give carers the proper support they deserve.

Autumn Budget: NHS needs to be top priority to prevent winter crisis

Ahead of the Autumn Budget on Wednesday, the Liberal Democrats are calling for a rescue package for the NHS to prevent a winter crisis.

Liberal Democrat Treasury spokesperson Daisy Cooper MP said:

Years of neglect by the Conservative Government have left our health and care services at breaking point. Bringing our NHS and care back from the brink needs to be the number one priority in this Budget.

Our NHS is already bracing itself for this year’s winter crisis, on top of the continuing pressures of long waiting lists, crumbling hospitals and a care system in crisis.

It’s clear that a robust rescue package for the NHS is vital for economic growth – we simply cannot repair our economy without repairing our health services.

In the Budget this week, we Liberal Democrats want to see a new fund to break the cycle of the annual winter crises, meaningful investment to overhaul crumbling NHS infrastructure and outdated equipment and the launch of cross-party talks to finally put social care on a sustainable footing.

Phillipson on Laura K: hospitals left to rot need funding for repairs

Responding to Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson announcing that the Government will commit to rebuilding crumbling schools during an interview with Laura Kuenssberg this morning, Liberal Democrat Treasury spokesperson Daisy Cooper MP said:

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17 October 2024 – today’s press releases

  • NHS repair costs rises to £13.8bn as Lib Dems call for comprehensive plan to end the backlog
  • McArthur responds to dental deserts in Orkney and elsewhere

NHS repair costs rises to £13.8bn as Lib Dems call for comprehensive plan to end the backlog

Responding to the latest NHS figures showing that the cost of repairs to the NHS estate now stands at £13.8bn, up from £11.6bn last year Liberal Democrat spokesperson for Health and Social Care, Helen Morgan MP said:

This comes as no surprise to anyone that works in the NHS. Crumbling hospital buildings, flooded wards, and rat infested basements are just the

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26 September 2024 – today’s press releases

  • Better pay needed to resolve recruitment crisis in care
  • Cole-Hamilton responds to Eye Pavilion statement

Better pay needed to resolve recruitment crisis in care

Almost half of leaving care workers cite pay as key factor as Welsh Lib Dems call for creation of carers wage

The Welsh Liberal Democrats have proposed the creation of a new carers wage in Wales, to help resolve the current recruitment crisis amongst care workers.
Speaking in the Senedd on Tuesday, Welsh Lib Dem leader Jane Dodds urged the Welsh Government to adopt proposals which would see care workers receive a £2 an hour pay increase on top of the …

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23 September 2024 – today’s press release

Cole-Hamilton calls for statement on eye hospital closure

Scottish Liberal Democrat leader, health spokesperson and MSP for Edinburgh Western Alex Cole-Hamilton has today called for the Scottish Government to deliver a statement in the Scottish Parliament on the closure of the Princess Alexandra Eye Pavilion.

It was announced last week that the Eye Pavilion, which provides ophthalmic care across Edinburgh and the Lothians, will close temporarily from Monday 28th October for six months while works on the plumbing system are carried out.

Campaigners including Mr Cole-Hamilton have long pushed for a replacement for the 55 year old Eye Pavilion building. However this replacement …

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26 July 2024 – today’s press releases

  • CQC: entire NHS and care system needs fixing
  • Cole-Hamilton: Fornethy women must be given the redress they deserve
  • Scottish Liberal Democrats respond to fresh NHS buildings delay
  • Stone ‘thrilled’ with Flow Country’s World Heritage Status

CQC: entire NHS and care system needs fixing

Responding to the Health Secretary saying that the Care Quality Commission “is not fit for purpose”, Liberal Democrat Health and Social Care spokesperson, Daisy Cooper MP said:

In recent weeks countless people have told us harrowing stories about not being able to get the care they or their loved ones need leaving them feeling anxious and abandoned.

The Conservative party kicked the can down the road on overhauling social care and sent NHS waiting lists spiralling. It is patients who have borne the brunt of this shocking neglect.

For too long, too many patients have had no levers to pull to stop things going wrong and when they do, complaints and regulatory systems are too complex and slow.

The findings of this report are staggering and the CQC and our entire NHS and care system needs fixing, with patient rights at its heart.

Cole-Hamilton: Fornethy women must be given the redress they deserve

Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Alex Cole-Hamilton MSP has today reiterated his call for the survivors of alleged abuse at Fornethy House to be allowed access to the Scottish Government’s compensation scheme for those abused while in residential care.

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