Update on major Manchester hospital rebuild as health secretary says 'sorry'

The huge rebuild of a Manchester hospital will happen, the health secretary has said - but it may be delayed.

Wes Streeting has told the Manchester Evening News that he is still committed to rebuilding North Manchester General Hospital. It comes as the new Labour government reviews plans for the 40 'new' hospitals promised by the Conservatives with the site in Crumpsall identified as one of 25 across the country that are at risk of being cancelled.

Boris Johnson backed the multi-million project soon after becoming Prime Minister in 2019 with 39 other sites also selected for the national programme. But weeks after winning the general election this year, the new government announced a 'complete review' of the programme, accusing their predecessors of making unfunded promises.

READ MORE: Everything we learned at Labour Party conference and what it means for you

Planning for the rebuild at North Manchester General Hospital has been ongoing for years, and preliminary work has been underway since at least 2022. A new car park is now up and running to serve the needs of the hospital while some of the site is under construction with some of the land sectioned off for contractors who have been on site.

In June, Mr Streeting told the M.E.N. that he would make sure that the ambitious rebuild of North Manchester General Hospital is completed. But he hinted that the project may be delayed.

Speaking to the M.E.N. at the Labour Party conference in Liverpool on Wednesday (September 25), he said that his commitment to the project 'has not changed'. He said: "What has changed is, I came into the government, first week, it was made clear to me that the timetables for the hospitals programme was a work of fiction and the funding for the