Politicians reject bid to stick with plans for single-site hospital at Overdale

Ministers wanted to scrap the previous government's plans for a 'world class' hospital at Overdale in favour of a hybrid hospital spread across the two sites. Credit: Government of Jersey

Jersey's government will not commit to plans to build a single-site hospital at Overdale.

It's after States Members rejected a proposal from Deputy Lyndon Farnham calling for Ministers to stick with the 'Our Hospital' project until a like-for-like price comparison with the proposed 'hybrid' healthcare facilities was published.

It was voted down by 32 votes to 15.

While Jersey's previous government wanted a new hospital at Overdale, a review carried out by the new government recommended facilities should be spread across multiple sites.

However, it would have all emergency and in-patient services at one site, and outpatient, elective and rehabilitation services at the other. 

The review was led by Jersey's Infrastructure Minister, Deputy Tom Binet, who previously told ITV News the £800+ million plans were "too big and too expensive".

The Infrastructure Minister told ITV News the government had "no choice" but to scrap the Overdale plans.

He added: "We have no choice but to turn our back on the project in its current form because it's just too big and too expensive.

"The situation is too volatile and the funding mechanism is broken. So those things set the groundwork for this review."

Deputy Binet - along with the Chief Minister and the Health and Treasury Ministers - have welcomed the States Assembly's decision to reject Deputy Farnham's proposition, saying it "would have tied the hands of the project team".

In a joint statement, they said: "We are pleased that the majority of the States Assembly agrees that pursuing a solution that is no longer affordable or achievable would be unwise.

"We will now work at pace with health and care workers to develop our clinical service model and provide the Assembly with the information they seek on the detailed costs and workforce requirements of the multi-site option in line with the findings of the review."

They added: "Our overarching objective remains to deliver fit-for-purpose, clinically and operationally safe, high-quality, and cost-effective healthcare facilities at a suitable scale and value for Jersey.

"We are committed to starting the new developments within the term of this government and to ensuring that the island benefits from a stable and happy workforce in this critical area of the public service."

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