North Devon MP Sounds Alarm Over Hospital Rebuild Delay

North Devon’s Liberal Democrat MP, Ian Roome, slammed the government following yesterday’s announcement that the start of construction of North Devon District Hospital will be delayed until 2035-38. Lib Dem MP for North Devon, Ian Roome, has labelled the news a “devastating blow and major setback for North Devon”. 

The planned rebuild of North Devon District Hospital has been delayed, with the Government announcing that construction, originally promised for completion by 2030, will now take place between 2035 and 2038. 

Concerns have been raised about the potential impact this delay may have on patient safety in the region, Liberal Democrat MP, Ian Roome, has been campaigning for the funding since first being elected in what Health Secretary, Wes Streeting, deemed “a dogged pursuit” of health and care investment in North Devon. Mr Roome has continually stressed the importance of the project for North Devon, since NDDH is mainland England’s most remote hospital and suffers from a high level of infrastructure risk on site, particularly around the condition of the theatres and critical care. 

Yesterday evening, in Parliament Ian Roome MP once again emphasised the severe risks North Devon faces due to this delay and called on the Health Ministers to visit the area and witness the situation firsthand - a request that Wes Streeting agreed to. 

The New Hospital Programme in North Devon already had a delivery partner already on board and was going through final business case approvals, so this will be a bitter disappointment to all involved. Ian Roome MP has also called on the government to release its impact assessment into what the delays to the completion of the project would mean for patients in North Devon and how at risk people being treated at North Devon District Hospital would be without the new building in place. 

Liberal Democrat MP for North Devon, Ian Roome, said: “This is a devastating decision. Patient safety here in North Devon is at risk and we have been desperately let down. We simply can’t wait any longer for North Devon District Hospital to be rescued. The Conservatives broke their word to our community and now this government has kicked the issue into the long grass.” 

“The neglect of NDDH will have a ripple effect on the entire Devon healthcare system. Both the Royal Devon & Exeter Hospital and Derriford Hospital already face serious pressure on service delivery, and confronting NDDH’s patient load would be catastrophic. It could also translate to the local population having long travel times to the next nearest hospital at our site in Exeter.” 

“The Health Secretary must immediately publish the impact assessment of what the delays to completing North Devon District Hospital will mean for people here in North Devon and how much longer we will have to suffer with not fit for purpose local health services. I will continue fighting for our community day in and day out until we get the commitments we need.” 

“I am furious at the former Conservative government for misleading our nation. We were promised transformative change, only to see it discarded and delayed. This is unacceptable, and we will not let it go unchallenged.”