New Health and Social Care Minister, Wes Streeting, has ordered a review of the funding and timetable for the previous government’s £20bn New Hospital Programme (NHP).

Facing questions in the Commons about the Conservative’s pledge to deliver 40 new and refurbished hospitals by 2030, Streeting vowed not to give patients ‘false hope’ about when they can expect more-up-to-date facilities.

He said: “It’s painfully clear that the previous government’s New Hospital Programme, that said they would deliver 40 new hospitals by 2030, is not deliverable in that timeframe.

“I want to see the New Hospital Programme completed, but I’m not prepared to offer people false hope about how soon they will benefit from the facilities that they deserve.

“That’s why I’ve asked officials as a matter of urgency to report to me on the degree to which the programme is funded, along with a realistic timetable for delivery.”

The New Hospital Programme was announced in 2020 and aimed to build 40 new hospitals in England by 2030.

It was given £3.7bn in capital funding up to March 2025, with more to be provided for the following five years.

The programme is also intended to transform how NHS healthcare infrastructure is built in the future, including by standardising hospital design and embracing offsite construction methods.

But Streeting said he was ordering a review of the programme following major delays and widespread concern that the projects will not go ahead or will be watered down.

And he promised to ‘come back to this House and back to the country with promises that we can keep and promises that the country can afford’.

Responding to news of the review, shadow health minister, Caroline Johnson, told the House the previous government had prepared to declare two New Hospital Programme schemes complete during the current 2024/25 financial year, with 18 more projects under construction.

And she warned the review would risk delaying much-needed projects, adding: “The Government is now putting this at risk by launching a review of this work, delaying those projects which are of vital importance to patients across the country.”

Tory MP, James Wild, also raised the issue of Queen Elizabeth Hospital, King’s Lynn, in his North West Norfolk constituency, where thousands of props are supporting the building’s roof, and urged the Government to sign off on the business case for a new hospital in the town.

Streeting replied: “When it comes to reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC) hospitals, they are top of my list of priorities.

“I’m extremely concerned about the dire state that the NHS estate is in.”