Current status: Answered by Neil Gray on 13 August 2024
To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the letter from the Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Local Government to the Finance and Public Administration Committee, dated 15 July 2024, what assessment it has made of the impact of the delayed Infrastructure Investment Plan on NHS capital projects and the delivery of NHS services.
The anticipated cut by the UK Government to the Scottish Government's capital budget of up to £1.3billion in real terms over the coming years has consequences. In December 2023, given the extremely challenging capital funding position, NHS Boards were instructed to pause any project development spend and instead direct capital budgets towards maintenance of the existing estate and essential equipment and digital replacement. Boards were notified that the Scottish Government does not anticipate starting construction of any new project over the next two years at least. Obviously should the UK Government change course on capital investment we have an opportunity to look at this again alongside the capital review ongoing across the Scottish Government.
There is therefore no change to the position on NHS Capital Projects as a result of the ongoing review of the Infrastructure Investment Plan.